Dusk of the Dead
by Count Morningstar
Summary: The long awaited sequel to Dawn of Shadows. Two months after the incident at the Old Chateau, Ash and Misty travel back to Lavender Town to meet with Cynthia on a certain matter. But the trip quickly takes a dark turn when Misty discovers a dead body. And soon enough, a sinister secret is uncovered. Rated M for shocking horror.
1. Prologue

**Introduction:** Good evening (or morning, or whenever you happen to be reading this). Well, after taking a short break from my Pokemon AU after doing my biggest story so far, _Best Wishes Revised_, I'm finally doing another Pokemon story. And in the spirit of the Halloween season, it's a horror story. It's also a story I want to use to set up and resolve a couple of things in this AU before getting into the sequel to _Best Wishes Revised_. Those who have not read my previous Pokemon horror story, _Dawn of Shadows_, I suggest you go do that before getting into this story any further. That said, sit back and prepare yourselves for a tale of terror.

**WARNING:** This story contains such a high level of shocking horror, you may actually die of fright before reading it. Do not read if you are pregnant or have a heart condition.

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Pokemon.

* * *

Prologue

Edger Gates ran through the halls of the dark tower as fast as his legs could carry him. But no matter how fast he ran, the thing continued to pursue him. The sound of the thing's bone dragging along the ground was constantly on Edger's tail no matter how far down the tower he got. Edger was cursing himself for coming back to the tower. It was twenty years since that bloody incident he was involved in. During all that time he had stayed away from that wretched tower, but then that evening in a moment of weakness and guilt that was perhaps brought on by a few mugs of beer he decided to come back to that place. He thought that perhaps he might've been seeking some way to make amends for what he had done, but in that moment he didn't care. The only thing that mattered now was saving his skin.

At long last, Edger came to the ground floor of the tower. His only hope was that the thing would stop following him once he got out. Perhaps the thing couldn't pass beyond the tower door. The thing continued to follow at its own slow and steady pace, the sound of its dragging bone still right behind. In mere moments, Edger finally made it out of the tower into the vast graveyard right outside. It seemed Edger was home free. The thing could no longer follow him.

Then Edger stopped when he saw someone standing in his path. Under the pale light of the moon he could tell that it was a young woman with blue hair and the most haunting pair of light blue eyes Edger had ever seen. Her eyes looked as though they had seen some blasphemous horror that should never be named, and they were made even more unpleasant by the cheerful smile that was on the young woman's face. Floating next to her was a small shadowy Pokemon that carried a golden mask with its tail. It was not a common Pokemon to Kanto. Edger thought that the Pokemon was called a Yamask but he wasn't sure, nor did he care at that moment.

"Good evening Mr. Gates." The young woman greeted. "My name is Dusk."

"I don't give a damn who you are! Now get out of my way!" Edger shouted. "You have no idea what's after me! If I don't get out of here, I'm dead!"

"Oh, I'm afraid running won't do you any good Mr. Gates." Dusk told him. "You did a very bad thing twenty years ago, and the one you hurt won't rest until you pay."

"I said get out of my way!" Edger shouted at the top of his lungs.

Dusk merely grinned and pulled out a sparkling Pokeball that was orange on the top. "Let's play… Giratina!"

Bursting out of Dusk's Pokeball was the most horrid creature Edger had ever seen besides the thing that was pursuing him. It was a massive serpentine dragon with a grey body that had a black and red-stripped underside. In place of legs it had six spikes with gold bands, and on its back it had six black streamer-like wings tipped with red spikes. Its face was covered in golden plates and its red eyes were like those of a demon. Edger was frozen in fear.

Then from behind, Edger could hear the horrid sound of that dragging bone coming ever closer. His hopes that the thing could not leave the tower were completely shattered to nothing. Edger was sure that he had met his end. Standing in front of him was a mad woman who commanded a creature from the very depths of hell, and behind him was the horrid thing that wanted his blood.

From behind him, Edger could hear the thing utter a single familiar word in its putrid voice, _"Marowaaak!"_

* * *

**Author's Note:** I'm sure many reading this have figured out what plot line I've borrowed from the original games to use for this story. I've of course put my own unique spin on it though. This is going to be a little bit darker than the games.

Chapter one is already up, so feel free to move on. Or if you like, please review and let me know what you think.


	2. The Quiet Town

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Pokemon.

* * *

Chapter 1: The Quiet Town

Just east of Saffron City was an area in the Kanto Region of the Pokemon world known simply as Route 8. It was a relatively uninhabited area with vast fields that were home to a few wild Pokemon. For many, Route 8 was simply a path between towns. And it was on this route that twenty-three year old trainer Ash Ketchum and his girlfriend Misty were waiting for two other traveling companions. But as they waited, the couple encountered a passing biker gang that was spoiling for a fight.

The leader of the gang had challenged Ash to a battle. Misty stayed on the sidelines to watch with one of Ash's most trusted Pokemon, the yellow electric rodent with the lightning bolt-shaped tail known as Pikachu. Ash meanwhile had sent another of his most trusted Pokemon into battle, the blue bipedal jackal, Lucario. The leader of the bikers on the other hand was using a large purple blob creature with eyes and a mouth known as Muk.

"Okay Muk, hit that wimpy Pokemon with Sludge Bomb!" the leader of the bikers ordered.

Muk opened its mouth and spat out a large ball of brown gunk at Lucario. The projectile struck the jackal Pokemon in the chest but did absolutely no damage.

"You do know that Lucario is a Steel-type, right?" Ash reminded him. "Which means your Poison-type attacks won't have any effect."

"Oh… crud!" the lead biker cursed.

"Lucario, hit that Muk with Bone Rush!" Ash commanded.

In his right paw, Lucario created a ball of blue light that quickly formed into a metal bone. Lucario charged in and struck Muk repeatedly with his weapon. In moments, Muk was out cold. With the battle at an end, Lucario calmly walked back to Ash's side, his metal weapon vanishing with a flash of blue light.

"There, I won. Now get lost you jerks!" Ash ordered.

The leader of the bikers grumbled something under his breath as he called Muk back to its Pokeball. The entire gang then drove off, leaving a cloud of dust in their wake.

"Man! When did this route become a hangout for scumbags like that?" Ash wondered.

"I just wish Sabrina and Morty would finally show up." Misty replied. "We've been waiting for half an hour."

"Wow! That was an outstanding display!" a familiar-sounding voice interrupted.

Ash and Misty looked to see a young woman with blue hair who looked to be in her late teens or early twenties. She had on a pair of glasses with large round frames and a brown coat with a short yellow scarf.

"I hope you'll forgive the interruption, but I couldn't help but watch your battle with that brute." The young woman explained as she walked up. "Your Lucario is actually just the specimen I've been wanting to observe."

"Dawn?" a surprised Ash and Misty asked together, recognizing the young woman as someone they had met before.

At this identification, the young woman sighed heavily and rubbed the bridge of her nose. "Oh dear. No matter where I go, it's always the same thing. I'm afraid the two of you have me confused with my sister, Dawn Berlitz. I'm actually her sister, Diane. The confusion is understandable, as we are physically identical. But if you're wanting an autograph, I'm afraid you're out of luck."

"Actually we met your sister a couple of months ago in Sinnoh." Misty explained. "She actually mentioned you."

"Yeah, we should've known you weren't Dawn when we saw the glasses." Ash realized.

"Oh, I see." Diane replied as a smile returned to her face. "I do hope you'll forgive my reaction before. People tend to confuse me with my sister all the time. They get all excited because they think they're meeting a celebrity."

"Is Dawn really that famous?" Misty asked.

"As famous as Pokemon Coordinators get, I suppose." Diane replied indifferently. "Anyway, might I have the pleasure of knowing your names?"

"I'm Ash and that's my girlfriend, Misty." The dark-haired Pokemon trainer greeted. "So Dawn mentioned something about you being a Pokemon researcher."

"That's correct." Diane confirmed. "My specialty is the field of ancient Pokemon legends and the effect Pokemon have had on the development of ancient cultures. I also have some expertise in the field of Pokemon evolution. Anyway, I've been hoping to study a Lucario in hopes of determining how exactly the species inspired the myth of Aura Guardians."

"Um, Aura Guardians aren't a myth." Ash told her. "Trust me, I know."

"Don't be absurd." Diane chuckled. "I'll admit that it's a charming legend, but there's no way humans could have that kind of ability."

"Aura Guardians are real. I'm one of them." Ash revealed.

"Really." Diane replied with a skeptical expression. "Okay then. If you truly are an Aura Guardian, then why don't you demonstrate your power to me?"

Ash closed his eyes and held out his right hand. In moments a ball of blue light formed in the palm of his hand. Ash opened his eyes and closed his hand, causing the sphere of light to vanish. Diane blinked with a look of disbelief.

"Well? What do you say to that?" Ash asked.

"Uh… oh my. That did look exactly like an Aura Sphere attack that a Pokemon would use." Diane admitted. "But I never imagined that a human could produce that kind of power. I simply dismissed the legend of the Aura Guardians as nothing more than a fairytale."

"A long time ago there were a lot more Aura Guardians around." Ash told her. "I'm probably one of the last ones left."

"This find certainly does open up a whole new field of questions." Diane admitted. "The biggest is what caused both humans and Pokemon such as Lucario to develop such an ability. There's also the question of why the number of Aura Guardians to decline over the years. Perhaps there could be some environmental factor that we're not yet aware of. Clearly much more study is needed in this area."

"Say Diane, just what brings you to this area?" Misty asked in an attempt to keep the conversation from getting too technical.

"Oh, I'm simply passing through here on my way to the power plant between Lavender Town and Cerulean City." Diane explained. "There's a legend that says that the legendary bird Pokemon Zapdos prefers to nest near there. What may I ask brings the two of you to this area?"

"We were invited to stay at this mansion in Lavender Town for a few days." Ash explained. "We're actually meeting someone we know there. It's someone you've probably heard of actually. She's the former champion of Sinnoh, Cynthia."

"The Cynthia?" an amazed Diane asked.

"You seem like a pretty big fan of hers." Misty observed.

"Not only is Cynthia a skilled Pokemon trainer, she's one of the most brilliant minds that the Sinnoh Region has ever produced." Diane replied. "Meeting her… I can't think of anything I'd want more."

"Why don't you come with us then?" Misty suggested. "I'm sure Cynthia and the people living at the mansion wouldn't mind."

"Oh, I couldn't possibly impose." Diane told her as her face turned red. "I mean… I'm sure I wouldn't be welcome. I'd probably just be a bother."

"Don't be silly. I'm sure you coming with wouldn't bother anyone." Misty assured her. "Would she Ash?"

"Of course not. I'm sure Cynthia would like to meet you." Ash declared.

"Well… if you insist." Diane finally agreed.

The conversation was interrupted by the sounds of screams not to far away. Ash and the others looked to see a woman with long green hair wearing a red jacket with a white shirt and black leather jeans approaching them. Walking behind her was a man with somewhat long blonde hair wearing a purple headband with a grey shirt, purple jacket, and black jeans. Ash and Misty recognized the couple as Sabrina and Morty.

"Sorry we're late guys." Morty apologetically greeted. "The train I took from Goldenrod was running a little late?"

"Uh, was that screaming we heard that biker gang Misty and I ran into a few minutes ago?" Ash asked.

"I have no idea, but took care of them." Sabrina coldly replied.

"You didn't turn them into dolls, did you?" Misty asked.

"Don't be absurd. I merely scared them off." Sabrina told her.

"Turn them into dolls?" Diane asked with a quirked brow.

"Oh, Sabrina's the leader of the Saffron City Gym." Ash introduced. "She also has some pretty powerful psychic abilities."

"You'll forgive me if I find that hard to believe." Diane replied.

Sabrina glared at Diane, and suddenly the bluenette rose twenty feet into the air. A terrified Diane screamed and flailed her arms and legs.

"Put her down Sabrina." Morty requested. "Gently."

"Oh fine." Sabrina agreed with a slight pout.

Slowly Diane came back to the ground, landing gently on her feet. All the color had drained from her face.

"I apologize for my behavior just now." Sabrina told her as she walked up. "I get a little… irritated… at people who don't believe that humans have psychic power."

"It's… it's quite alright." Diane nervously replied. "I'm, uh… I'm Diane Berlitz, by the way. It's a pleasure to meet you Ms. Sabrina."

"Is she coming with us?" Sabrina asked Ash and Misty.

"That's not going to be a problem, is it?" Ash asked.

"…I suppose not." Sabrina agreed after a moment. "Come on. I'm sure the Barons are starting to wonder where we are."

With that, Sabrina and Morty continued on in the direction of Lavender Town. Ash, Misty, and Diane stayed behind with Pikachu and Lucario for a moment.

"Ms. Sabrina seems… very confident." Diane observed.

"Just be glad she didn't shrink you down to the size of an action figure." Ash told her.

"Or turn you into a doll." Misty added.

Ash and Misty walked off with Pikachu and Lucario after the two gym leaders. After a moment, Diane quickly caught up to the rest of the group. In less than five minutes, the group had arrived in the sleepy little village of Lavender Town. Upon their arrival, the group headed straight for the town's Pokemon Center. Sabrina and Morty left the others to go contact the owner of the mansion they were heading to in order to let him know they had arrived. Diane meanwhile went to go talk with a hiker who had recently gone by the area she was on her way to before running into Ash and Misty. This left Ash and Misty alone in the waiting area with Pikachu and Lucario.

"I'll say one thing about Diane. She's nothing like Dawn." Misty commented.

"You can say that again." Ash agreed. "She seems pretty smart though."

"Yeah. Of course her people skills could probably use a little work." Misty remarked. "Still, she seems pretty nice. Don't take this the wrong way, but I'm glad we ran into Diane on the way here instead of Dawn's other sister."

Ash knew of the other sister that Misty was talking about. Dawn and Diane were two of three identical triplets, and those two months before in Sinnoh when they first met Dawn they also met the third Berlitz sister, Dusk. Dusk was quite strange, to say the least, and the couple's encounter with her was unsettling.

"Excuse me." A voice interrupted, causing Ash and Misty to look. The person speaking was a scruffy-looking man in his twenties with dark-brown hair and grey eyes wearing a trench coat. "Would you happen to be Ash Ketchum and Misty Waterflower?"

"That's us." Ash confirmed. "And you are?"

"My name's Ben Norris. I'm a reporter for Pokemon World News." The stranger replied. "I've actually been wanting to speak with the two of you for quite some time now."

"Are you writing a story on me or something?" Ash asked. "I mean I wouldn't be surprised if you were. I am a little famous."

"Actually I'm not writing a story on you, Mr. Ketchum." Ben revealed. "I actually wanted to talk and Ms. Waterflower because of a side story I've been working on for the last few years. The two of you were in Eterna Forest in Sinnoh about two months ago, right?"

"…Yeah. We were." A surprised Ash confirmed. "Why do you want to know?"

"Did either of you happen to meet a young woman there who happened to resemble the Pokemon Coordinator, Dawn Berlitz?" Ben asked.

"Why do you want to know about that?" an unsettled Misty replied.

"Please, I have to know!" Ben told them with a look of desperation.

"Norris!" Diane shouted as she suddenly stormed over.

"Oh, Ms. Berlitz!" a surprised Ben greeted. "I had no idea that…"

"I told you that I never wanted to see your face again, you heartless scavenger!" a furious Diane reminded him. "I'm going to give you ten seconds to leave my sight!"

"Please, if you'll let me explain…" Ben pleaded.

"Go, Porygon!" Diane called out as she threw out a Pokeball.

Bursting out of the ball was pink creature that resembled a bird made from simple geometric shapes. The end of its beak was blue, as was its tail, underside, and the shapes at its side that acted as a pair of wings.

"Porygon, use Lock-On on Norris!" Diane commanded. "If he hasn't left in five seconds, fire a Zap Cannon at him!"

"Whoa! Chill out Diane!" a shocked Ash told her.

"Pika!" Pikachu cried out as he jumped off of Ash's shoulder and stood between Porygon and Ben.

"It's okay. I'll leave." Ben relented. "Sorry to bother you."

With that, Norris left and walked out of the Pokemon Center. As soon as he was gone, Diane sighed and called Porygon back to its ball.

"Diane, that was way too extreme!" Misty told her.

"I'm sorry you had to see that." Diane told them. "Don't worry, I wasn't really going to attack Norris. That tactic was simply the most efficient method of getting him to leave."

"Just what the hell was that all about?" Ash demanded to know.

Diane sighed heavily as she sat down in an available chair. "I met that scum who calls himself a reporter a few years ago. He was trying to dig up information on my family that was of a very delicate nature. No doubt for some sleazy exposé. You're both probably already aware of this, but both my mother and my sister Dawn are somewhat famous. I'm sure Norris wanted the information in the hopes of using it to tarnish their reputations, not to mention my own."

"He was asking about Dusk, wasn't he?" Ash deduced.

"How do you…?" Diane began to ask.

"Well this is an unexpected surprise." A very familiar voice interrupted.

Ash and the others all looked to see a young woman who looked exactly like Diane, only without the glasses. Her blue hair was held in place at the sides of her head by a pair of yellow berets, and atop her head was a white snowcap with a pink logo that looked like a Pokeball on the front. The rest of her attire consisted of a black buttoned-up vest over a sleeveless white shirt, a short pink skirt, and pink boots. Tied around her neck was a pink scarf, and on her left wrist was a pink watch with a white band. Standing at the blunette's feet was a small blue penguin-like Pokemon with a large head that Ash and Misty both recognized as a Piplup. There was no mistaking it. It was Diane's sister, Dawn.

"Hi Ash, Misty." Dawn warmly greeted. "Long time no see, huh?"

"Yeah, hi Dawn." A very surprised Misty greeted.

"What's wrong? You guys don't look happy to see me." A confused Dawn observed. As soon as she noticed Diane, her expression turned very serious. "Oh… hi Diane."

"Dawn." Diane greeted back as she stood up.

"Well… I sure didn't expect to run into you here." Dawn told her.

"Nor did I." Diane replied. "The last time I checked, Lavender Town wasn't known for those frivolous Pokemon Contests you and mother seem to enjoy."

"There you go again! You're always putting down Pokemon Contests!" Dawn protested. "Why do you always have to do that?"

"I'd have more respect for those contests of yours if they actually had some practical use!" Diane argued. "Showing off a Pokemon's attacks simply because they look pretty is a waste of that Pokemon's skills!"

"I'm not getting into this damn argument again!" Dawn shot back. "Now what the hell are you doing here?"

"That's none of your concern!" Diane told her. "I have as much right to be in this town as you do!"

"Fine! Whatever!" Dawn replied as she turned to leave. "Ash, Misty, I'm sorry but if I stay here in the same room with my sister any longer I'll probably do something we'll all regret. I'll see you around."

With that, Dawn stormed off. Piplup stayed behind for a moment and simply looked at Ash and the others, but quickly hurried off after his trainer, tripping along the way.

Diane sighed again and slumped back into her chair. "This is quickly becoming a stressful day."

"Sorry to keep you waiting." Morty interrupted as he and Sabrina returned. "There's been a change of plans. The man we're supposed to meet, Julius Baron, will be waiting for us at the Tower of Memories."

"What's the Tower of Memories?" Misty asked.

"It's a massive cemetery for most of the Pokemon here in Kanto." Sabrina explained. "I'm a bit surprised that the two of you aren't familiar with it. Surely you saw it the last time you were in this town."

"That was a long time ago, and we really didn't have a lot of time to do any sightseeing." Misty explained. "We were a little more worried about Ash catching a Ghost Pokemon."

"And just why was catching a Ghost Pokemon so important?" Sabrina asked.

"I needed it so I could beat you in our gym battle." Ash reminded her.

"Oh…" Sabrina replied as a hint of embarrassment came to her face. "Yes, I can see why that would be more of a priority."

"We should probably get going." Morty suggested. "We don't want to keep Mr. Baron waiting."

With that, Ash and the others left the Pokemon Center and headed straight down the center of town. Before them in the distance was a somber-looking tower made of grey stone. In only a few minutes the group had reached the massive monument that was the Tower of Memories. In the yard surrounding the tower they could see row after row of Pokemon graves. In front of them was a large funeral procession of mourners heading into the tower.

Standing right beside the tower door was a man with slicked back silver hair and a mustache wearing a black suit and tie. A somber expression was on the man's face.

Morty led the group up to this gentleman, who immediately took notice of their arrival. "Excuse me, are you Julius Baron?"

"Why yes." The silver-haired man greeted. "You must be Morty of the Ecruteak City gym and the others here to see Ms. Cynthia."

"How is it that you know Cynthia?" Ash asked.

"Her grandmother is an old friend of the family." Julius explained. "You must be Ash Ketchum. I've heard a good deal about you. You're quite the trainer."

"Thanks." Ash replied.

"Now then, I hope you'll all forgive me for having you meet me here." Julius continued. "A friend of mine is having a funeral for his Pokemon and it ended up being moved to today."

"We understand." Morty replied. "We can wait around here if you like."

"Of course, of course. The service shouldn't be too long." Julius assumed. "Feel free to take a look around. This tower is the town's most famous landmark. People from all over the world come here just to get a look at it."

"If it's all the same to everyone else, I think I'll just stay out here and walk around." Misty decided.

"Okay, the rest of us will probably stay on the ground floor of the tower." Ash informed her.

The group split up after that. Misty walked off into the outdoor cemetery while the others went into the tower. As she walked through the rows of headstones, Misty couldn't help but notice how ornate and beautifully crafted a lot of them were. It was clear that the Pokemon buried in that graveyard were loved.

Misty was distracted from her sightseeing when she suddenly hear the humming of an eerie tune not far away. The redhead felt that she recognized the voice and it made her uneasy. Against her better judgment, Misty followed the sound of the humming. In a far off corner of the cemetery she found the source of the eerie tune, a young woman who from the back looked just like Dawn and Diane. Misty had a feeling who the young woman was, but hoped very much that she was wrong.

Cautiously, Misty approached the singer. "…Is that you Dawn?"

The young woman turned around to look at Misty, and instantly Misty knew that it was not Dawn who was before her. She looked like Dawn, but the eyes were clearly not the same eyes that Dawn had. They were crazed eyes. Eyes that had seen sights that no mortal was ever meant to see. Misty had seen those eyes before. They were the eyes of Dawn and Diane's sister, Dusk.

"Hello Misty." Dusk chuckled. "Looks like you mixed me up with my sister again, huh?"

"Yeah… looks that way." Misty replied with a nervous smile. "How are you Dusk?"

"Pretty good." Dusk replied. "Hey, you like my new outfit?"

Misty took a moment to look at the outfit Dusk was wearing. Atop her head she had on a snowcap like Dawn's, only it was black and the Pokeball logo was blue instead of pink. Like Dawn, Dusk also had on a pair of berets to hold her hair in place, only they were white and looked like a pair of cartoonish skulls. Around Dusk's neck was a tattered grey scarf. The rest of her wardrobe consisted of a sleeveless black shirt with a silver cross on the front, a short red checked skirt, and a pair of knee-high black socks with red shoes. On each wrist she also had on black bracelets with silver chains.

"Oh, it's you." Misty told her. "It certainly makes it easier to tell you apart from Dawn."

"Doesn't it?" Dusk chuckled. "So, whacha doin' here?"

"Ash and I are just in town visiting a friend." Misty answered. "What, um… what brings you here?"

"Just trying to help right a wrong." Dusk innocently answered. "You know a very bad thing happened in this place a few years ago."

"You don't say." Misty replied, this time turning around to look at the tower. "Say, Ash and I ran into your sister Diane. She's actually with us right now. Why don't you…" when she turned back around, Dusk was nowhere in sight, "say hi…"

Unsettled by this development, Misty began to run back to the tower as fast as her legs could carry her. As she ran she suddenly tripped over a large object and fell to the ground. Misty sat up to get a better look at the object. It was the body of a somewhat overweight man with stark white hair and a beard. He had on a black jacket with a green shirt and long brown pants. An expression of utter terror was frozen on his face. Misty let out a bloodcurdling scream when she realized that the man she had tripped over was dead. She had found the body of Edger Gates.

* * *

**Author's Note:** Those who remember the original anime probably recall that Pokemon Tower was depicted as a creepy mansion that was home to the Haunter Ash would use against Sabrina. Because of that, I had to rename the "real" Pokemon Tower as the Tower of Memories for the purposes of this story. Anyway, some of you reading might recognize the character of Ben Norris as the narrator of the prequel to _Dawn of Shadows_, a sort of experimental story I did called _Memories of Maiden's Peak_. It's not really necessary to read _Memories of Maiden's Peak_ to understand what's going on in this story though.

Anyway, this is also the first appearance of Dawn's other sister, Diane. Her original first appearance was going to be in a story that I was going to do after the _BWR_ sequel, but I decided to bump it up a bit. With the issues between these three sisters and the Pokemon they have in their respective arsenals, it's safe to say that this story is going to build up to something big.

Please review and let me know what you think.


	3. The Baron Mansion

**Author's Note:** I'd like to thank everyone who reviewed this story in the last chapter. I'm real please to see that it's already gotten a bit of attention. By the way, not long after I worked on _Best Wishes Revised_, I put up a rough timeline of this Pokemon AU on my profile page. This story has already been added to it.

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Pokemon.

* * *

Chapter 2: The Baron Mansion

Officer Shannon O'Hara Jenny was a bit more laid back than the rest of her clan of law enforcement professionals. She shared her family's desire to uphold the law, yet didn't want to be posted in a city with a high crime rate like Celadon. So when Shannon was assigned the post of Lavender Town, it was a dream come true. Lavender Town was one of those sleepy little villages where everyone was friendly and the worst crime was littering. The only major incident of crime was a raid on the Tower of Memories that happened twenty years ago. So the last thing Shannon expected to get that afternoon was a call saying that someone had found a dead human body.

By the time Shannon got to the cemetery outside the Tower of Memories, the area where the body was found had already been surrounded by crime scene tape. Kneeling over the body of Edger Gates was a man who looked to be in his mid thirties with sandy brown hair wearing glasses and a tweed jacket with leather patches on the elbows, along with a pair of latex gloves. This man was the town's human doctor and the closest thing they had to a medical examiner, Dr. Clint Waldo.

"Well Clint, what've we got?" Shannon asked as she walked up.

"I'm no expert like one of those big city medical examiners," Clint began as he looked up from the body, "but it's my professional opinion that this man is dead."

"Very funny." Shannon sarcastically replied. She then noticed the face of the corpse. "Holy shit! This guy's Edger Gates! He's the richest lawyer in town."

"Not to mention the drunkest." Clint added as he pulled out the liver probe inserted into Edger's body. "I saw him a couple nights ago at Blake's Tavern. He really tied one on."

"It's a miracle he never wound up in my drunk tank." Shannon remarked. "So what killed him and when?"

"Well I can place time of death sometime around midnight last night." Clint answered. "As for what killed him, I can't say for sure until I open him up. But I can tell you that he wasn't shot, strangled, or stabbed."

"So it wasn't murder then." Shannon assumed.

"Now I didn't say that Shannon." Clint pointed out. "The fact is I don't know what killed old Edger yet, but I can tell you one thing. Whatever he saw last night before he died scared him shitless."

"What makes you say that?" Shannon asked.

"You kidding? Look at his face Shannon!" Clint told her. "Plus Edger's hair's as white as a sheet. When he was alive, he was a little grey around the edges but his hair was as black as a piece of coal."

"Oh yeah." Shannon recalled as she put her hand to her chin. "Well I guess the question is, what did he see? And what the hell was he doing out here at midnight?"

"Hey, I'm just a humble doctor. Figuring that stuff's your department." Clint reminded her. "Anyway, the girl who found the body's over there."

Shannon looked across the field and saw Misty in Ash's arms. She looked very shaken up. The rest of Ash's traveling companions were there as well, along with Julius Baron.

"Hey, isn't that the guy who's planning to run for mayor in the next election?" Shannon realized as she pointed at Julius.

"Yep, Julius Baron." Clint confirmed. "Looks like a good chance to meet your next boss."

"You really think he has a chance of beating old man Fuji?" Shannon asked.

"Hey, Mayor Fuji's run unopposed for the last fifteen years." Clint pointed out. "Plus he's getting on in years. And this Baron guy's pretty smooth. I wouldn't be surprised if this town was in for a change."

"Well whatever." Shannon shrugged. "Right now, I've gotta figure out what the hell happened to Mr. Gates."

"Yeah, first things first I guess." Clint agreed. "Hey, you wanna grab a beer at Blake's later tonight?"

"Only if you're buying." Shannon replied as she walked off.

Shannon lifted the crime scene tape and walked up to Ash and Misty. She could tell that the young trainers were more than just friends. There was also something about Ash's Pikachu that reminded Shannon of something but she couldn't put her finger on it.

Before Shannon could open her mouth to ask a question, Julius walked up to her. "Excuse me Officer Jenny. I'm Julius Baron."

"I know who you are Mr. Baron." Shannon told him.

"Yes, well I just wish to know what you're doing to find out what happened to Edger Gates." Julius explained. "You see he's… or rather he was a friend of mine."

"I only got here just a minute ago sir." Shannon informed him. "Now if you'll let me do my job, I can get to the bottom of this."

"Yes, of course." Julius replied. "Forgive me."

Shannon turned her attention back to Misty. "So you're the girl who found the body?"

"Uh, yeah. My name's Misty." The redhead confirmed.

"How'd you find the body?" Shannon asked.

"Well, I was walking through the graveyard when I tripped over… that body." Misty explained. "I didn't see what it was until I started to get up."

"Was there anyone else around when you found the body?" Shannon inquired.

"…No. No, I was alone." Misty answered.

"The rest of us were inside the tower when Misty found the body." Ash explained. "I was the first one who found her with it."

"Was the person Misty found murdered, Officer Jenny?" Diane asked.

"We don't know anything for sure yet." Shannon told them.

"Well if Edger was murdered, I trust you'll do everything in your power to find his killer." Julius assumed.

"Don't worry Mr. Baron, I'll get to the bottom of this." Shannon assured him. "In the meantime, I think I've learned all I can here. You can all leave, but I'd appreciate it if you'd stay in town for the next few days."

"No problem." Morty assured her. "We'll be available if you need us."

With that, Shannon began to walk off, only to stop when she figured out what Ash's Pikachu reminded her of. "Say, did any of you people used to travel with a guy named Brock?"

"Ash and I did a few years ago." Misty answered. "Why?"

"Your friend hit on my cousin in Fuchsia City a couple months ago when she was directing traffic during an accident clean-up." Shannon chuckled. "My cousin has kind of a temper, and to teach your friend a lesson she threw him in a cell for a night. If you run into your friend again, you might want to tell him to steer clear of Fuchsia for awhile."

"Sure, no problem." Ash replied.

Shannon continued to leave. As she walked off, she couldn't help but feel that Misty was holding something back. Like she wasn't telling the whole story. Shannon didn't know how, but she got the feeling that Misty and perhaps Ash were both somehow involved in whatever was going on.

* * *

On the top of a rocky hill on the outskirts of Lavender Town near the path leading to the Kanto Rock Tunnel sat the opulent white mansion owned by Julius Baron. The two-story house was well maintained and had a beautiful courtyard with a fountain in the front. It was to this mansion that Julius had led Ash and the others right after the incident at the Tower of Memories. The main hall of the mansion's interior was more gorgeous than the outside. The floor was checked with green and tan tiles and the first thing the group noticed walked in was the magnificent marble staircase.

Walking down the stairs as soon as Ash and the others entered the mansion was an older-looking woman with long brown hair and deep blue eyes. She had on a white long sleeved shirt with buttons down the front and long black pants.

"There you are darling." The woman spoke to Julius as she walked up to him. "I was beginning to wonder where you were. Did the funeral run long for some reason."

"No, I'm afraid not." Julius sighed before turning back to Ash and the others. "Everyone, this is my wife, Patricia."

"Oh, you must be Cynthia's friends." Patricia realized. "It's lovely to meet you all."

"Patricia, I'm afraid I have some dreadful news." Julius informed her. "Edger Gates is dead."

"Dead?" a shocked Patricia repeated. "What happened?"

"We don't know. But there's a chance that it might be murder." Julius answered.

"Murder? But who would murder poor Edger?" Patrica wondered. "He may have been a bit of a drunk, but he'd never hurt a soul."

"Officer Jenny is looking into the matter now." Julius assured her. "I'm certain she'll find out what happened."

"Excuse me, Mr. Baron?" Misty interrupted. "You said earlier that Mr. Gates was a friend of yours?"

"Yes, Edger and I went back a long way." Julius answered. "But anyway, it seems my wife and I are being inconsiderate. The five of you and your Pokemon must be tired after your journey here."

"I'll get someone to show you to your rooms." Patricia offered.

"Actually, if it's all the same to you we'd like to see Cynthia." Ash replied. "It seemed like she had something important to talk to us about when she asked us to come here."

"Very well. Cynthia's using Julius's study for her research right now." Patricia revealed. "Oh Miranda?"

On Patricia's call, a young woman with shoulder-length light blue hair and green eyes entered the room. She had on a black maid's uniform with long sleeves and a wide skirt that ended just above her knees.

"You called, Mrs. Baron?" Miranda asked.

"Please show our guests to Julius's study." Patricia requested.

"As you wish ma'am." Miranda replied with a bow before turning to Ash and the others. "If you'll all follow me please."

Miranda the maid led Ash and the others through the halls of the ground floor of the mansion. In moments they had arrived in a large office with polished wood walls and large shelves full of books. Sitting at the large ornate desk looking over an old parchment was a woman with long blonde hair and a tired expression wearing a sleeveless light blue shirt. Ash and the others immediately recognized the woman as Cynthia.

"Ms. Cynthia, your friends have arrived." Miranda informed the former Sinnoh Region champion, causing her to look up from her work.

"Oh, thank you Miranda." Cynthia replied. "That'll be all."

"Yes ma'am." Miranda bowed before turning back to Ash's group. "If there's anything else I can help you all with, don't hesitate to ask." With that, she walked out of the room.

"It's good to see you again, Ash." Cynthia greeted. "I trust you didn't have any trouble coming here."

"There was one thing that happened, but we can talk about that later." Ash replied. "Why'd you ask us to come here?"

"I found some information about the coming battle that we're all involved in." Cynthia explained. "I'm sure you haven't forgotten about that."

Ash knew very well of what battle Cynthia was talking about. He had seen that battle in a vision shown to him by the Legendary Pokemon Ho-Oh not long after he had captured it, a battle where he, Misty, and several others were to fight an enemy known only as the Dark One.

"Trust me, I haven't forgotten about that for a moment." Ash assured her. "But… I can't help but wonder if that battle is really going to ever happen. It's been years since I last saw that vision."

"That's what I wanted to talk to you about." Cynthia revealed. "The parchment I'm studying is part of a manuscript written by a monk from Johto who had multiple visions of the battle against the Dark One. In it, he wrote of all the events that will lead to that battle. Unfortunately I'm having a lot of trouble translating it. The monk wanted to keep what he wrote a secret, so he wrote it in an ancient language that hasn't been used in eight hundred years."

"So if you figured out what the manuscript said, you think it can help us figure out when this battle is supposed to happen?" Misty asked.

"That's right. But this language has me completely baffled." Cynthia sighed. "I came here to Lavender Town because Julius has a few books in his collection I hoped that would help. But so far I haven't been able get anywhere with it."

"Um… perhaps I could be of some help." Diane sheepishly offered. "I mean, I'm not certain but I think I've seen that language before."

"Oh… and you are?" Cynthia asked.

"This is a new friend of ours, Diane." Misty explained. "We met her on the way here. She's a Pokemon researcher, and pretty smart."

"Well then, feel free to give it a try." Cynthia replied as she held out the parchment to Diane.

Diane took a deep breath and took the parchment from Cynthia. Looking at the top line, she began to read aloud. "And in her rage, the false prisoner shall call upon the power of the lord of nightmares to strike down the king of marauders. Though the fall of the king shall bring peace to the land, the Dark One shall add the king's strongest subjects to his army."

"That… that was very impressive." An amazed Cynthia praised.

"Oh, it was nothing." Diane replied, her face turning bright red. "I saw this language used in a remote temple in the Sinnoh Region. It took me a few weeks myself to translate, but I'm sure you would've gotten it soon enough."

"I've been struggling with that text for months." Cynthia revealed. "You said that you had figured out how to translate this language in a matter of weeks?"

"Well yes, but as I said it was nothing." Diane insisted.

"Give yourself some credit Diane." Cynthia praised. "What you've just done is simply… remarkable."

"All praise aside, what did that passage mean?" Sabrina asked.

"It's one of the events that will lead up to the battle." Cynthia explained. "The next step is to figure out what individuals the passage was talking about."

"The false prisoner…. Ash, you think that the manuscript might be talking about Marie?" Misty wondered.

"Yeah, I think you're right." Ash agreed. "And Darkrai might be that lord of nightmares the manuscript's talking about."

"Who's Marie?" Cynthia asked.

"Our friend, Marie Dantes." Ash explained. "Years ago, her psycho cousin Andre framed her for a crime that sent her to jail. She got out of there by joining Team Rocket, but when she ran into Andre again she used her Darkrai to knock out Giovanni, the leader of Team Rocket, so she could leave the organization and get her revenge."

"Then the king of marauders could be referring to Giovanni." Morty deduced.

"If that's true, then the battle with the Dark One might be a lot closer than we think." Cynthia replied.

"So just how close are we to this battle?" Misty asked.

"I won't know for sure until I translate the entire manuscript." Cynthia answered. "Diane, it would mean a lot if I had your help with this."

"Oh… it would be a great honor to work with you, Cynthia." Diane agreed. "But… if you don't mind me asking, what's this battle that all of you are talking about?"

"There you are!" a voice suddenly interrupted. "I was wondering when you'd be getting here."

Walking into the room was a young man with blonde hair wearing a green sweater vest with a white shirt and tan slacks. He looked like a much younger version of Julius.

"Uh, hi there." Ash spoke to the stranger. "And you are?"

The young man suddenly realized that the room was not entirely empty. "Oh. Sorry for barging in like this. You must be the people Ms. Cynthia had my dad invite up here. I'm Carter Baron, by the way."

"Nice to meet you." Ash replied. "I'm…"

Carter ignored Ash and turned to Diane. "That's quite the outfit you're wearing Dawn. So what's the gag?"

"Oh not again." Diane sighed heavily.

"There you are Carter." Another voice interrupted. Everyone looked to see Dawn and Piplup standing in the doorway. "What are you…?" In moments, Dawn noticed Diane was in the room and became angry. "What the hell are you doing here?"

"I could ask the same of you?" Diane replied.

"Uh, Dawn? Why is there a nerdy-looking version of you here?" a confused Carter asked.

"Carter, meet my sister Diane." Dawn replied. "Diane and everyone else, meet Carter, my boyfriend."

"Not to sound nosy babe, but how come you never mentioned you had a twin sister before?" Carter asked.

"We're not close." Dawn answered. "Carter, could you give me a few minutes with Diane?"

"Yeah, no problem." Carter replied. "Nice meeting you all." With that, Carter quickly left the room, shutting the door behind him.

"Get out! Now!" Dawn ordered Diane.

"I will most certainly not!" Diane shot back. "I have as much right to be here as you do."

"I don't want you ruining my weekend with Carter, now leave!" Dawn told her.

"I don't know what's going on here, but if Diane is leaving than so am I." Cynthia interrupted. "I need her help with some very important work."

"I don't care!" Dawn angrily replied. "If you want to go with my sister, than go! I won't stop you! But she's not staying here!"

"Being my sister doesn't give you the right to order me around!" Diane told her.

"Both of you… cut it out!" Misty shouted at the top of her lungs, causing the two sisters to flinch. The room fell completely silent.

"Misty, is something wrong?" a concerned Ash asked.

"…I lied before when Officer Jenny asked if I was alone when I found Mr. Gates' body." Misty revealed. "Just before I found it… I ran into Dusk."

"Wait, Dusk is here too?" a shocked Dawn asked. "What's she doing here?"

"I have no idea." Misty answered.

"You know my other sister as well?" Diane realized.

"We met Dusk at the same time we met Dawn." Ash answered.

"Diane… Dusk isn't as crazy as we thought." Dawn admitted. "I know it seems crazy, but she really can see the dead and talk with Ghost Pokemon."

"Don't be absurd!" Diane argued. "That fantasy of hers is merely her way of coping with the trauma she experience when she was three."

"When Dusk disappeared that week when you were kids, she ended up in the Distortion World." Ash informed Diane. "She ended up there because some nut job of a scientist in the area was tinkering with some invention that blew up in his face."

"The Distortion World?" Diane repeated. "The realm ruled by the mythical dragon, Giratina?"

"The Distortion World is no myth, Diane. I was there with Ash and Misty once many years ago." Cynthia revealed. "Ash, if what you're saying is true, how did Dusk return to our world?"

"Giratina sent her back." Ash answered. "Ever since that happened, Dusk said she was able to communicate with Ghost Pokemon and see the spirits of the dead."

"Then perhaps what happened to the girl you're speaking of awakened some latent psychic ability of hers." Sabrina theorized.

"So then… Dusk isn't insane?" Diane realized.

"Not the way we thought at least." Dawn answered. "The things I saw that time with Ash and Misty proved to me that Dusk's powers or whatever you want to call them are real. But I'm sure they've also driven her nuts."

"I wouldn't be too sure about that." Ash told them.

"If that truly is the case, then we need to bring Dusk in and find her the help that she needs." Diane decided, ignoring Ash's words.

"That might not be easy." Dawn told her. "That day when Dusk ran off while you were at those ruins in Johto, Dusk ran into Arceus. For some weird reason, Arceus gave Dusk a newborn Giratina."

"I see…" Diane replied. "It must've happened only a few minutes before I encountered Arceus."

"You met Arceus too?" a surprised Ash asked.

"That's correct." Diane confirmed as she reached into her coat pocket. "And when it happened, Arceus gave me this." The object Diane pulled out of her pocket was a sparkling Pokeball that was blue on top and white on the bottom. "This Pokeball contains what was then a newborn Dialga. Which means I'm most likely the only one who stands a chance against Dusk and her Giratina."

"That's where you're wrong." Dawn told her as she pulled out a sparkling Pokeball of her own that was pink on top and white on the bottom. "I checked out those ruins a few months after Dusk ran off, and while I was there Arceus gave me a Palkia."

"Then that mean… all three of you have one of Sinnoh's legendary dragons." Ash realized.

"Misty, am I correct in assuming that you think Dusk had something to do with Mr. Gates' death?" Diane asked.

"I just don't know." Misty replied.

"I'll admit that Dusk is a little out there, but I don't think she's the kind of person who'd kill someone." Ash cut in. "There could be something else going on here."

"Well whatever the case, Dusk must be brought in before she hurts herself or someone else." Diane decided. "Which means I need to be close at hand if and when she reveals herself. Am I making myself clear Dawn?"

"…Okay fine, you can stay here at the mansion." Dawn finally agreed. "But while you're here, I want you to steer clear of me as much as possible."

"Only if you agree to do the same." Diane replied.

* * *

Shannon walked into the morgue at the Lavender Town hospital. Inside, Clint was sewing up the opening he had cut into Edger's chest to do the autopsy. Shannon was quite glad she had not arrived a few moments sooner. She had never seen the inside of a dead body before, and did not want to start anytime soon.

"Ah, right on time Shannon." Clint greeted. "Bet you're wondering what killed old Edger, huh?"

"That'd be nice to know." Shannon replied. "So, what did kill him?"

"As far as I can tell, it was a massive heart attack." Clint answered. "And my guess is that it was caused by massive fright."

"So wait, you're saying that Edger Gates literally died of fright?" Shannon asked.

"Pretty much." Edger confirmed as he removed his gloves. "Guess you can close the books on this one."

"I wouldn't be so sure about that." Shannon told him. "There are still a few unanswered questions. Like what was he doing at the tower that late at night? And what scared him so badly that he ended up dying of a heart attack? Until I can figure that out, this case is still wide open."

"You got a point there." Clint admitted. "But let's call it a day for now. I'm sure we can pick this up in the morning."

"Yeah, it is getting pretty late." Shannon agreed.

"You still up for that beer?" Clint offered.

"Sure. And how 'bout swinging by my place afterward?" Shannon suggested. "After a day like today, I could use your company."

* * *

Dinner at the Baron mansion was tense to say the least. The meal began as soon as everyone had gathered in the large dining room that housed a table that could seat twenty. Since the dinner had started, the entire room was silent and think with tension. Part of it had to do with the mystery of Edger Gates' death, but another part was because of the tension between Dawn and Diane. The entire time, the two sisters had been glaring at one another.

"It is so nice to have the house so full of guests." Patricia remarked in an attempt to start up conversation. "Don't you agree darling?"

"Huh? Oh, very much so." Julius replied. "Cynthia, I've been told that Dawn's sister has been a great help to you in your work."

"Yes, I should be able to translate that manuscript in a matter of days with Diane's help." Cynthia replied.

"If her talking doesn't bore you to death first." Dawn remarked under her breath. The room again fell silent.

"So Dawn, how did and Carter meet?" Misty asked in an attempt to restart the conversation.

"What? Oh, I ended up competing against Carter in a Pokemon Contest in Saffron last month." Dawn explained. "He really gave me a hard time in the final round."

"Yes, but in the end there was no way I could win against such a strong and beautiful Coordinator such as Dawn here." Carter praised.

"Oh you." Dawn blushed.

"I can see why my sister is interested in you Carter." Diane cut in. "It seems she can't resist such cheap flattery."

"What did you say?" an offended Dawn replied.

Before an argument could break out, Miranda walked into the room. "Forgive the interruption Master Baron, but Mr. John Braxton has come to see you."

"Oh. I suppose I should've been expecting this." Julius replied. "He's probably just as disturbed by Edger's death as I am."

"Is this guy a friend of yours Mr. Baron?" Ash asked.

"John, Edger, and I go quite a ways back." Julius confirmed. "Well don't keep him waiting Miranda, show Mr. Braxton in."

"Actually, Mr. Braxton insists on speaking to you in private sir." Miranda informed him.

"Oh very well." Julius sighed. "Send him to my study. I'll meet him there shortly."

"Yes sir." Miranda replied before leaving the room.

* * *

Julius left the dinner table early and entered his study to find John Braxton waiting for him. John Braxton was a thin-looking man with unkempt olive-green hair and brown eyes. He had on a long black coat with a grey shirt and blue jeans. Right away, Julius noticed how nervous and pale John looked.

"Good lord man! You look terrible!" Julius declared as he shut the door to the office. "Are you all right John?"

"He's dead Julius. Edger's dead!" John reminded him.

"I know. I was there when the body was found." Julius sighed.

"He was at the tower, wasn't he?" John assumed. "He said he was going there last night. That's what got him killed."

"What the devil are you talking about?" Julius asked.

"It was that thing Julius!" John told him, his face looking very crazed. "That thing is what killed him!"

"You're not making any sense." Julius told him.

"Like hell I'm not!" John declared. "You know what I'm talking about Julius. It's been almost twenty years to the day since we committed that deed at the tower. And now that thing has come back for revenge! It wants our blood Julius, and either one of us could be next!"

"Good lord! You're not serious, are you?" Julius asked. "That pathetic creature is dead. There's no way it come back for revenge."

"Tell that to Edger. He told me last night he was feeling guilty about what we did twenty years ago and was going back to that wretched tower to try and make amends." John revealed. "And because of that, the thing killed him."

"I don't believe that for a minute." Julius insisted. "Besides John, even if that creature has come back, out of the three of us you should be safe. Edger and I were the ones who did the deed because you had too weak a stomach for what had to be done."

"My hands are just as dirty as yours!" John declared. "They're dirty because I was too much of a coward to stop you and Edger that day."

"We had our orders." Julius reminded him. "That creature wouldn't have died if it hadn't gotten in our way."

"We crossed a line Julius!" John insisted. "You knew that just as much as Edger and I. That's why we all left the organization that day! We tried to rub the slate clean and start new lives for ourselves. But we can't erase what we've done Julius. And now that thing is back for our blood!"

"You're being ridiculous John." Julius told him. "Go home and get some rest. It will do you a lot of good."

"Fine. I'll go." John agreed. "I just thought I should warn you that the time of our judgment has finally come." And with that, he walked out of the office, slamming the door shut behind him.

* * *

John walked alone out under the night sky. The wind swept dead leaves through the empty streets of the small village. Lavender Town had gone to sleep for the night. As John headed home, he constantly saw the Tower of Memories looming over him in the distance. To him, that hollowed monument to Pokemon was a constant reminder of what he, Edger, and Julius did those twenty years past. Why he and the others continued to stay in that town was beyond him. The only reason John could come up with was that perhaps they all stayed there out of guilt.

As John continued to his house, he suddenly found that he was in the cemetery around the Tower of Memories. It seemed that he had been walking towards the tower without realizing it. That graveyard was the last place that John wanted to be. Especially after what happened to Edger. Just as he was about to turn and leave, John heard a sound in the distance. It was the sound of something being dragged.

"Hello?" John called out. "Is anybody out here?"

_"…Marowaaak!"_ a putrid voice answered back.

John's blood ran cold. He knew in an instant what creature had just spoken to him. John began to run as fast as he could, but the sound of that dragging from before was still behind him and coming closer. John made it out of the cemetery, but the dragging sound continued to come closer. The sound of what John determined was a dragging bone stayed with him as he continued to run through town. He never expected the thing to be able to leave the tower grounds. The things grudge was greater than John thought.

As soon as John turned a corner he saw someone in his path. It was Dusk, and floating next to her was a small shadowy Pokemon that was essentially a sort of head with tendril-like arms at its sides and a hook-like tail hanging beneath. Around its small black eyes were large red circles that had bumps at the bottom that slightly resembled tears. With its hook-like tail, the Pokemon carried a golden mask with the face of a beautiful woman. John knew the creature to be a foreign Pokemon called a Yamask.

"Good evening Mr. Braxton." Dusk cheerfully greeted. "My name's Dusk. The Yamask here with me is my friend, Helen."

"Get out of my way!" John shouted. "You have no idea what's after me right now!"

"Oh, but I do Mr. Braxton." Dusk replied. "She's really angry about what you did twenty years ago. Running isn't going to do you any good."

_"Marowaaaak!"_ the thing's voice called again. John knew that it was right behind him.

"Looks like it's time to play." Dusk grinned as she pulled out a Pokeball.

Against his better judgment, John turned around to get a look at his pursuer. As soon as he saw the thing, a scream echoed through the entire town.

* * *

**Author's Note:** One thing I've discovered as I've done more and more writing is that one seems to get a feel for how long a chapter is going to be. There was a lot I had to set up in these last two chapters. One thing I ended up pushing ahead in this story was revealing that Diane had a Dialga. I was going to save that revelation for the climax, but I sort of felt like it wouldn't be that much of a surprise.

Please review and let me know what you think.


	4. The Cubone Massacre

**Author's Note:** I forgot to mention last time that for those who may not be aware, the event Diane read from that manuscript in the last chapter was an event from one of my previous stories, _Revenge of Noir Mask_. So it's pretty much all sort of connecting a tiny bit.

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Pokemon.

* * *

Chapter 3: The Cubone Massacre

Morning had come to Lavender Town, along with the promise of a new day and a cool crisp autumn breeze. Ash had decided to use that time to head out of the mansion on his own and head into town to visit the old Pokemon Tower. The Pokemon Tower was a creepy old abandoned mansion that Ash and his companions had visited years before in order to find a Ghost Pokemon that could defeat Sabrina. On the night Ash had originally visited the tower, he and Pikachu had not only ended up befriending a Gengar, a Gastly, and the Haunter that would later become Sabrina's Gengar, they had also had a very unique out of body experience. Ash had decided that it was time to drop in on the remaining Ghost Pokemon living at the Pokemon Tower to say hi.

As Ash, Pikachu, and Lucario neared the Pokemon Tower though, they suddenly noticed a large crowd of people gathered at the corner of the street. Right away, Ash got a very bad feeling about what those people were looking at. The trainer and his two Pokemon companions made their way through the mass on onlookers and made it to the front row. There, Ash and the other two saw Shannon standing over the dead body of John Braxton. Clint's examination of the corpse was already underway.

"I've never seen anything like this before Shannon." An unsettled Clint told her. "As near as I can tell, he died the same way old Edger did."

"You mean he died of fright?" Shannon asked.

"Well I won't know for sure until I open him up, but it sure looks that way." Clint replied. "But two men dying of fright in two days? No way that's a coincidence."

"Yeah, the more you look at it, the more it seems like a murder." Shannon agreed. "But what I can't figure out is the connection between Braxton here and Edger Gates."

"Well Edger and John Braxton have been pretty good friends for years." Clint recalled. "Maybe that's the connection."

"You think someone has a grudge against them?" Shannon wondered.

"Could be. But then I'm just a doctor." Clint replied. "Still, if both John and old Edger were murdered, I think it's a safe bet it's someone they both ticked off."

"Excuse me, Officer Jenny?" Ash interrupted, getting Shannon's attention.

"You're that Ash kid from yesterday." Shannon recalled.

"Yeah, my name's Ash Ketchum." Ash replied.

"Ketchum? Wait, weren't you the kid who helped break up Team Galactic in Sinnoh a few years ago?" Shannon asked.

"That was a long time ago." Ash confirmed. "It's not something I like to think about either. Anyway, who's the man that died?"

"His name's John Braxton. He owned a small business here in town." Shannon explained. "Why, did you know him?"

"I didn't, but Mr. Baron mentioned he did last night." Ash revealed. "In fact, Mr. Braxton came to the mansion last night to talk to Mr. Baron. I don't know what they talked about though."

"Well that's certainly interesting. I think I'll go pay Mr. Baron a visit." Shannon decided. "Thanks for the tip."

"No problem." Ash replied.

As Shannon walked off, Ash glanced and saw that a familiar figure had been watching the whole conversation between him and Shannon. It was Ben Norris. Ben quickly shuffled his way out of the crowd of people. Ash and his two Pokemon quickly but quietly went after him. The trio quickly caught up to Ben in a nearby alley.

"Hey!" Ash called, causing Ben to stop. "I want to have a talk with you?"

"What about?" Ben asked as he turned around. "Let me guess, you want to warn me to stay away from Diane Berlitz and the rest of her family, right?"

"No, I want to know how you know Dusk." Ash answered. "When we bumped into you at the Pokemon Center before, I got the feeling that you weren't asking us those questions just to do a news story. You've met Dusk before, haven't you?"

Ben sighed heavily and looked Ash straight in the eye. "Ever been to Maiden's Peak here in Kanto?"

"A few years ago." Ash answered. "My friend Brock was seduced by the ghost of Maiden's Peak. Of course it turned out to be some weird talking Gastly."

"Mr. Gastly. That's what Dusk called him." Ben recalled. "I was pretty much a kid when I moved to the Peak with my family. The day I moved there was when I met Dusk. And on that night I saw things that changed me. That night still haunts me to this day."

"What happened?" Ash asked.

"It's a long story, and I'm sure there's a lot of parts that you wouldn't believe." Ben answered. "That night, Dusk helped the real ghost of Maiden's Peak cross over to the afterlife. And I helped."

Ash did recall that Dusk had said she once helped the fabled Maiden's Peak ghost pass on to the other side. Though at the time he didn't believe it, at least not entirely. But Ash felt certain that Ben was telling the truth.

"Ever since that night I've been trying to learn all I can about Dusk." Ben continued. "I've even been hoping that I'll actually run into her again some day. She's almost constantly been on my thoughts ever since that night. In fact you might think this sounds completely nuts but… I think I'm in love with her. And you're probably thinking right now that I should just try and forget about Dusk, but I can't. I've seen too much of her world for my life to go back to the way it was."

"Actually, I was thinking that Dusk could really use someone like you with her." Ash revealed. "Seems like you care about her a lot. And I think you have a right to know that Dusk is in this town right now."

Ben's eyes widened. "Do you know where?"

"No clue, but I think the reason why she's here has something to do with the two men that have died in the last couple of days." Ash theorized.

"If you're thinking that Dusk killed those guys, you can forget that!" Ben told him. "Dusk may be strange, but I know she wouldn't kill anyone."

"I don't think she killed those two guys either. But I do think she's involved somehow." Ash told him. "You have a better feel for Dusk than I do. Maybe you know what she might be doing in town."

Ben held his chin and thought for a moment. "…It's a hunch, but it might have something to do with the story I'm working on right now. It's a puff piece my editor handed me about this tragedy that occurred here twenty years ago. How much the town has changed since that time and all that. I was just about to go speak to the mayor to find out what that tragedy was about."

"I'd like to come with." Ash requested. "It could explain a lot about what's going on here."

With that, Ash and Ben headed off into the center of Lavender Town, where they quickly found the town hall. Right inside was a desk with a female receptionist with red hair and glasses doing paperwork.

Ben walked up to the desk. "Excuse me, I'm Ben Norris. I have an appointment to see Mayor Fuji."

"Come on in, Mr. Norris." A voice called from an open room on Ben and Ash's left. "I've been expecting you."

Ash and Ben walked into the room. The room was a fairly small office with wood paneled walls and a single large window behind the deck. Sitting at the deck was an old bald man who looked to be in his eighties with bushy white eyebrows wearing a grey suit with a black tie. This of course was the mayor.

"Well, it seems you've brought a guest with you Mr. Norris." Mayor Fuji observed. "What's you name, young man?"

"Ash Ketchum." The dark-haired trainer replied.

"You wouldn't happen to be an Aura Guardian, would you?" Mayor Fuji asked half jokingly.

"What makes you say that?" Ash asked. He was a bit surprised that the old mayor had hit the nail on the head.

"Oh, the fact that you have a Lucario with you. And that blue vest you're wearing." Mayor Fuji answered. "Plus there's a certain way that you carry yourself. But I'm sure neither of you came to visit an old man like me just to talk about Aura Guardians."

"My paper asked me to do a story about the tragedy that happened here in this town twenty years ago." Ben confirmed. "The word is that you're the man to ask about that."

"Ah, you mean the massacre that happened in the Tower of Memories." Mayor Fuji deduced. "Yes… I know that tragedy very well."

"It happened at the Tower of Memories?" a surprised Ash asked.

"In those days, the tower was not just a burial ground for Pokemon who have passed on. It was a home to wild Pokemon as well." Mayor Fuji revealed. "In that time, the tower was inhabited by scores of Cubone and a few Marowak, both fairly rare Pokemon for this region as you both may know. I suppose it was their nature as bone keepers that drew the Pokemon to the tower. But no one minded them being there.

"Then one day an army of men from Team Rocket raided the tower in order to kill the Cubone living there and collect their skulls to sell on the black market. There are sadly people who see the skulls as collectors' items. Many of the Cubone and Marowak living in the tower that time were either badly hurt or killed before the police managed to get there. The greatest of those casualties was a mother Marowak who died trying to protect her five young children. Unfortunately her efforts were in vain. Before the police could arrive at the place where she was killed, four of that Marowak's five children were killed."

"Those bastards!" Ash cursed under his breath.

"The orphan Cubone that survived ended up with me." Mayor Fuji continued. "I had opened a house for abandoned and abused Pokemon that is still in service to this day. If it is any comfort to you Ash, the young Cubone that survived was given to kind Pokemon trainer."

"What about the Team Rocket army that raided the tower?" Ben asked.

"All but three were caught and stood trial." Mayor Fuji answered. "The three that got away were the three men responsible for the mother Marowak's death. To this day, no one knows where the three went. And that, I'm afraid, is the end of that story."

"Well, I think I have enough to start with." Ben replied. "Thank you for your time, Mayor Fuji."

Ash and Ben left the office with Pikachu and Lucario after that. Once out of the building, they stopped for a moment to think and take in all they had learned.

"So twenty years ago, three of the men from Team Rocket who murdered that Marowak and her kids got away." Ben reviewed. "And now two other men are dead."

"You think it's connected?" Ash asked.

"Dusk deals with the spirits of the dead. Which means that an actual ghost might be involved in all this." Ben theorized. "And I'm betting that any mother would be pretty ticked off at anyone who hurt her kids."

"There's probably someone else involved in all this." Ash realized. "The guy who's mansion I'm staying at, Julius Baron. He was real good friends with the two men who've just died."

"Looks like we're thinking the same thing." Ben realized. "I'm going back to the hotel I'm staying at to see what I can dig up on Edger Gates, John Braxton, and Julius Baron. Let's keep in touch, huh?"

"Good idea." Ash agreed. "In the meantime, I'll be back at the Baron mansion. I'll see you later."

* * *

Cynthia had settled in on a couch in the mansion's sitting room for the afternoon to catch up on a book she had been reading. She and Diane had gotten a great deal done with the translation of the manuscript and had decided to take the afternoon off. Cynthia was amazed that they had gotten as far as they did though. Diane's ability to translate the ancient text was simply astounding.

"Diane, don't you dare walk away from me!" Dawn's voice shouted from outside the room, disturbing Cynthia from her book.

"I'm not having this discussion with you again Dawn!" Diane shouted. "Now leave me alone!"

"This whole thing is all your fault, you!" Dawn shot back. "Dusk ran off because you cared more about some dumb old ruins than your own sister!"

"How dare you! I love Dusk just as much as you do!" Diane told her.

"Like hell, you damn robot!" Dawn fired back.

Cynthia then heard the distinctive sound of a face being slapped. After a moment, Diane ran into the room with tears in her eyes. In one swift motion she removed her glasses and threw herself onto the nearby chair and began to sob.

"…Diane?" a concerned Cynthia spoke as she stood up.

Startled, Diane looked up. "Oh… uh, C-Cynthia. I'm sorry. I-I didn't know… uh, I'll uh… I'll just leave."

"You don't have to go." Cynthia replied as she walked over. "What's wrong? What happened?"

"Oh, well… I got into a fight with Dawn." Diane explained. "I'm sure you noticed that… my sister and I don't get along."

"What were you fighting about?" Cynthia asked.

"We… we were fighting about our other sister… Dusk." Diane revealed. "That's what most of our fights are about actually. Most of the time it was my responsibility to look after her. One day I was helping Professor Rowan investigate the Sinjoh Ruins and Dusk was with me. I left her alone for just a minute and she was gone."

"So Dawn blames you for that?" Cynthia deduced.

"It was my fault." Diane cried. "I do sometimes I get a little too involved in my work. If I had only taken a moment to listen to Dusk, then maybe… maybe she'd still be with us."

"You don't know that for sure." Cynthia pointed out.

"Dawn doesn't think I care at all about what happened." Diane continued. "I do come off as unfeeling sometimes but… there isn't a day that goes by when I don't miss Dusk."

"Well you're not unfeeling to me." Cynthia assured her.

Touched, Diane began to sob once more. Cynthia pulled her into a hug.

* * *

Misty walked through the halls of the mansion on the way to her and Ash's room. On her way there, she ran into Dawn and Piplup. The little penguin Pokemon looked noticeably unsettled, and right away Misty saw the red mark on Dawn's cheek.

"You okay Dawn?" a concerned Misty asked.

"I'm fine." Dawn sighed. "Hey, do you know where Carter is?"

"I think he's outside in the courtyard." Misty answered. "Are you sure you're okay? What happened to your face?"

"Oh, Diane and I just had a pretty bad fight." Dawn explained. "It's actually nothing new."

"Is all this stuff between you and Diane about Dusk?" Misty deduced.

"Pretty much." Dawn confirmed. "I just get so mad at Diane for letting Dusk run off that day. If she cared more about her own sister than some dumb ruins, Dusk would probably still be here."

"Aren't you being a little unfair? I'm sure Diane cares about Dusk as much as you do." Misty pointed out.

"Yeah right." Dawn scoffed. "All Diane's ever cared about is her research! She's like some kind of walking computer!"

Before the conversation could continue, Ash entered the hallway with Pikachu and Lucario. "Have either of you guys seen Mr. Baron?"

"He should be around here somewhere." Misty replied. "Officer Jenny came by earlier to talk to him earlier. Is something going on Ash?"

"Mr. Baron's friend, John Braxton was found dead this morning, just Edger Gates." Ash revealed.

"Oh god!" Misty exclaimed.

"You don't think Dusk had something to do with it, do you?" Dawn asked.

Before Ash could answer, Julius entered the hallway. A very troubled expression was on his face.

"Hey Mr. Baron, I've got a question for you." Ash told him, getting his attention.

"Oh, why certainly Ash." Mr. Baron replied with a weak smile. "How can I help you?"

"Do you know anything about the Cubone massacre that happened in the Tower of Memories twenty years ago?" Ash asked.

Julius's face went pale and his smile vanished. "The Cubone massacre? Well… I've heard of it anyway. It's a very infamous event in this town. But I'm afraid that I'm in no mood to discuss such a grizzly topic at the moment."

"Fine. Sorry I brought it up." Ash replied with a very suspicious look.

With that, Julius calmly walked off down the hallway. Only a moment later, Ash cried out and hit the wall with his fist, almost breaking a hole into it.

"Ash, are you okay?" a very concerned Misty asked.

"I think I'll go find Carter now." Dawn quickly decided. "C'mon Piplup." With that, she and Piplup quickly departed, leaving Ash and Misty alone with Pikachu and Lucario.

Misty put a hand on Ash's shoulder. "Ash, what's wrong?"

"That bastard!" Ash cursed. "He and his damn friends killed that Marowak!"

* * *

**Author's Note:** I said I'd be putting a darker spin on the Marowak ghost event from the original games. By the way, Mayor Fuji is supposed to be Mr. Fuji from the original games. The guy who give the player the Pokeflute after saving him from the Team Rocket thugs in Pokemon Tower. He was sort of a last minute addition to the story. I got the idea to put him in after seeing part of that _Pokemon Origins_ special.

Please review and let me know what you think.


	5. Night Encounters

**Author's Note:** Just to give everyone a heads up, this chapter is one of the main reasons why this story is rated M. Some of these scenes get pretty steamy. So some readers may want to skim over those parts if they don't like reading that kind of thing.

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Pokemon.

* * *

Chapter 4: Night Encounters

Night had fallen upon Lavender Town and the Baron mansion. Earlier in the evening, Ash and Misty had gotten together with Sabrina and Morty to discuss what Ash had learned earlier that day about the Cubone massacre from twenty years before. And of the possible involvement of Julius and the two men that had died. They had decided not to involve Dawn and Diane in the discussion, due two the argument the two sisters had gotten into earlier that afternoon. Plus with Dawn being involved with Carter, there was a chance that she would not be very receptive to what Ash had to say about Julius.

"I see… This situation really is troubling." Morty declared after hearing all of what Ash had to say. "Considering the story of this massacre and Dusk's ability to communicate with the dead, it's quite possible that the vengeful spirit of that Marowak could be involved somehow. She could even be responsible for the deaths of those two men."

"But… if that's true, is Dusk helping the ghost of that Marowak or trying to stop her?" Misty wondered.

"On that, I can only guess." Morty answered. "Though it would explain the deaths, we don't even know if there really is a Marowak ghost."

"Ghost or not, there's another part of this situation that concerns me more." Sabrina admitted. "Those three sisters all have extremely powerful Pokemon. And it's clear that none of them get along with each other."

"Yeah, it's like they get along as well as the original dragons of Sinnoh." Ash agreed. "I saw Dialga, Palkia, and Giratina get into it at Mt. Coronet. If Arceus hadn't shown up when he did, that whole mountain would probably be a crater today. And who knows what would've happened to the rest of the world."

"If the sibling rivalry of the Berlitz sisters gets out of hand, it could mean disaster." Sabrina informed them.

The conversation was interrupted when the door to the room opened and Dawn walked in. "Sorry to barge in on you guys? What are you all talking about anyway?"

"Just talking about old times." Ash lied. "What's up?"

"I wanted to ask you a favor Ash." Dawn explained. "Would it be alright if Pikachu and Lucario stayed with me and Piplup tonight? Piplup's kind of stressed, and I think he'd like the company."

"Sure. That's fine with me." Ash agreed. "Misty and I could use the night alone anyway."

"On that note, I think we should call it a night." Morty decided. "I'm going to go for a walk to clear my head."

"Do you wish me to come with?" Sabrina asked.

"That's okay. I won't be gone very long." Morty assured her.

"I think I'll head to bed." Dawn decided. "Goodnight everyone."

"Goodnight, Dawn" Ash replied. And with that, the group broke apart for the night.

* * *

Diane headed off to her room to turn in for the night. After the day she had been through, she was looking forward to some rest. Plus she needed to be awake and alert to help Cythia with the manuscript. As Diane passed the sitting room, she glanced in and saw Cynthia sitting alone on the couch drinking a glass of red wine. Diane couldn't help but notice how elegant Cynthia looked. She was like a goddess or a queen.

To say that Diane was an admirer of Cynthia's was an understatement. It had started out as admiration. Diane had always been a huge fan of Cynthia for both her skill as a Pokemon trainer and her intellect as a researcher. But over time, Diane had started to see Cynthia in another way. She had developed a crush on her, and it had never faded over time. But of course Diane had always kept such feelings to herself. She had always been certain that if anyone had found out about them, they would think her strange. It had made working with Cynthia a bit harder, but Cynthia needed her help to complete her work. Plus working alongside the former Sinnoh champion had been Diane's dream for a long time.

Against her better judgment, Diane nervously walked into the room to speak with her idol. "Uh… Cynthia?"

Cynthia quickly noticed the young researcher's arrival. "Oh, hello Diane. What are you doing up so late?"

"I was actually just on my way to bed." Diane explained. "I… just thought I'd come in real quick to say goodnight."

"Aw, you're leaving already? Come and sit down." Cynthia offered as she patted the vacant spot on the couch. "I could use your company."

"Oh… Well, I guess I could stay up a little bit longer." Diane agreed.

After a split second of hesitation, Diane went over and sat on the couch. Her heart began to beat a little bit faster being so close to Cynthia. But she had to keep calm. She couldn't afford to lose control.

"Care for a glass?" Cynthia asked as she poured some wine into a spare glass. "It's very fine wine that comes from the vineyard owned by Patricia's family in Johto."

"Oh… well… if you insist." Diane agreed against her better judgment. She then noticed something about that bottle of wine. "Cynthia… did you drink most of that bottle by yourself?"

"Huh? Oh… I guess I did." Cynthia chuckled, noticing the now empty bottle.

Diane took a breath and sipped from her glass. The wine was like nothing she had ever tasted before, and it blazed a trail down her throat. Diane had heard in the past that wine was something of an acquired taste, and now she knew why.

"Tell me Diane… are you involved with anyone?" Cynthia suddenly asked.

Diane was caught completely off guard. "You… you mean romantically?"

"Uh-huh." Cynthia confirmed as she took another sip. "Well… so are you?"

"Uh… to, to tell you the truth, I've never been involved in a romantic relationship." Diane admitted. "I've always been too involved in my own work to have one. Are, um… are you involved with anyone?"

"Not for a long, long time." Cynthia answered. "Not since Cyrus. He was a brilliant man, perhaps the most brilliant man I've ever known."

"What happened to him?" Diane asked.

"He died." Cynthia answered bluntly. "I took it pretty hard. But… in reality he wasn't the man I thought he was. To me, and the rest of the world he was a kind man, but in reality he was a monster. He had only used me to get what he wanted. His death hit me pretty hard… but I think what I've had the most trouble accepting was that Cyrus wasn't the man I thought he was."

"Cynthia I… I had no idea." A stunned Diane told her.

"I had dated a few men before Cyrus. A few women too." Cynthia continued. "But none of them were as brilliant as Cyrus was."

Diane was immediately struck by something Cynthia had just said. "Uh, Cynthia? Did… did you just say you've been romantically involved with other woman?"

"You don't have a problem with that, do you?" Cynthia asked.

"No, no, no! Of… of course not!" Diane frantically assured her. "I was… I was simply surprised."

Diane took another sip from her glass that was a little bigger than her first. The conversation had taken a very unexpected turn. Never in her wildest dreams had Diane expected Cynthia to find other women attractive in a physical way. She began to wonder what would happen if she told Cynthia how she felt about her. But she quickly tried to push the idea from her mind. Just because Cynthia found other women attractive didn't mean she'd find her attractive in that way. Besides, Cynthia was older than she was.

"Well anyway, ever since Cyrus I've thrown myself completely into my work." Cynthia went on. "I guess we make quite a pair, don't we Diane? We're just a couple of lonely researchers. I feel like we're very alike in some ways. Though I do think you're far more brilliant than I could ever hope to be."

That last comment made it impossible for Diane to keep her feelings in check. She never imagined that Cynthia would say anything like that to her. Diane didn't know if it was the wine, but she was suddenly feeling a bit bold. Though in an attempt to gain some added courage, she downed the rest of her glass in one gulp.

"Uh… Cynthia? I was just wondering if you could help me with something." Diane nervously began. "Could you come with me to my room to help me with… an experiment?"

* * *

Morty sighed heavily as he reached the door to his and Sabrina's room at the Baron mansion after returning from his walk. The situation of the past couple of days had become quite troubling, and Morty was looking forward to getting some rest. But as soon as he entered the room and closed the door, an invisible force suddenly ripped his shirt clean off. Morty looked and saw Sabrina standing in front of the bed. She had on black leather gloves that went up past her elbows and knee-high black leather boots with spiked heels, along with a black leather corset and chocker. In her hands, Sabrina held onto a whip. Upon seeing Sabrina, Morty suddenly became much more alert.

"Get on the bed." Sabrina ordered. "Now."

Morty felt his pants becoming uncomfortably tight. "…Okay."

* * *

Shannon had been starring at the dry erase board she had covered with the facts of her current case for what seemed like five hours straight. Not matter how she looked at it, the deaths of Edger Gates and John Braxton looked like murder. Yet the cause of their deaths seemed natural, and she couldn't find anyone who would have a reason to kill either of them. Nor could she find anyone with a reason to want to kill Julius Baron. Shannon was drawing a blank. The officer's thoughts were interrupted by a knock on her office door.

Shannon sighed and rubbed the bridge of her nose. "Come on in."

The door opened and Clint walked in. "How's it going?"

"It's not." Shannon replied as she turned away from the board. "Please tell me you found something."

"I did a thorough examination of both Edger and John. They both died of some kind of heart attack brought on by extreme fear." Clint reported. "I sent their blood work in to the lab in Saffron to see if they could find some kind of poison that might've caused it, but I won't lie to you Shannon. I don't think they'll find anything."

"Great! So we're nowhere!" a frustrated Shannon exclaimed. "And I can't think of any reason why anyone would want to kill our two victims or Julius Baron."

"Well you know what they say about people in small towns. They all have their secrets." Clint pointed out as he sat on the corner of Shannon's desk. "And Baron's a politician. I'm sure he has a whole shit load of skeletons in his closet."

"But which one of those skeletons would make someone want to kill him?" Shannon wondered.

"Why don't we call it a night?" Clint suggested. "Right now, it seems like we're both going in circles."

"I guess you're right." Shannon sighed. A wicked idea suddenly came to her mind. "Hey, we're alone in this building now, right?"

"As far as I know." Clint answered. "We're the only ones crazy enough to be in the office this late. Why?"

"Wanna get it on?" Shannon smirked.

"What, in your office?" a surprised Clint asked. Shannon nodded. "Why Shannon O'Hara Jenny, you devil."

"Hey, I'm not innocent just because I'm a cop." Shannon pointed out as she approached him. "Besides, we've both had a long day."

"That we have." Clint agreed.

The two became locked in a passionate kiss. They broke apart after a few moments for air. Shannon moved and leaned over her desk. Clint took the signal and came behind her to hike up her skirt. It looked like it was going to be a long night after all.

* * *

Misty was on all fours on the bed as Ash thrust his rod into her from behind like a dog. After all the things that had happened during the last few days, Misty needed to feel Ash's raw power inside of her. And after what Ash had learned that day about the Cubone Massacre, he needed to relieve a bit of stress as well. As Ash continued to push his rod deep into her core, Misty could feel herself getting close to the edge. Suddenly Ash took hold of Misty's left leg and pulled it straight back. He then began to thrust deeper and harder into her. They were both coming close. With one final hard push from Ash, both of them climaxed at the same time. Misty could feel a pleasant warmth rush into her.

Exhausted, the couple collapsed onto the bed. Ash put his arm around Misty as they caught their breath.

"So… feeling better?" Ash asked.

"Much." Misty replied with a big grin. "I really needed that."

"It really has been a weird couple of days." Ash remarked. "I never thought we'd run into Dawn and both her sisters in the same place."

"I certainly never expected to run into Dusk again." Misty admitted. "…She scares me, Ash."

"Yeah, she kind of scares me too." Ash agreed. "…But I think she's mostly misunderstood. And I think she has a good reason for a lot of the stuff she does."

"But… two people have died." Misty reminded him. "And Mr. Baron might be next."

"We don't know what happened to those guys for sure." Ash pointed out. "For all we know, she probably didn't have anything to do with their deaths."

"You have a point there." Misty admitted. "I guess until we know for sure what's going on, we shouldn't blame Dusk."

"Yeah. But let's not talk about this anymore tonight, okay?" Ash requested.

"Okay." Misty agreed before kissing Ash on the forehead. "So, think you can go for another round?"

"I think I'm up for the challenge." Ash smirked.

* * *

Julius stood out on the deck looking at the night sky. His eyes were drawn to the Tower of Memories. That wretched tower where he, John, and Edger had committed what was perhaps the ultimate sin. Over the years, Julius had found ways to justify what he and the others had done. The one he had used the most with himself, John, and Edger was that it was all in the line of duty. They had been given their orders, and it was up to them to carry them out by any means necessary.

That reason had been of very little comfort to Julius that night though. He had dismissed John's claims that the thing had come back for revenge. Edger's death was simply one of life's unfortunate events, and Julius had never been one to believe in ghosts. He knew of Ghost Pokemon of course, but those were just odd creatures from some unknown dimension. Real ghosts were simply a myth. That was what Julius had always believed. But now he was starting to doubt that belief.

It was impossible to believe that John's death was simply a coincidence. Especially after John made such a fuss about the thing having been responsible for Edger's death. Twenty years was a long time to hold a grudge. And Julius couldn't help but wonder if the thing had gotten fed up with waiting. Perhaps his time of judgment truly had come after all.

Patricia walked out onto the deck. "Darling, what are you doing out here?"

Julius turned to face Patricia with a weak smile. "Nothing dear. I've just got a lot on my mind."

"Well it's getting late. Come to bed." Patricia told her.

"I'll be there in a moment." Julius assured her.

Patricia smiled and walked back into the house. As she did, Julius couldn't help but wonder if tomorrow would be the last day he would ever see her.

* * *

Cynthia was still trying to figure out exactly what had happened. Though she had been starting to care less and less as the situation advanced. It was all kind of a blur. Most likely in part because of all the wine she had drunk that evening. One moment, Diane had asked Cynthia to come back with her to her room to help her with some sort of experiment, then the next moment the two were all over each other. And now they were both naked and Cynthia had been pinned to the bed as Diane sucked on her breast.

Of course Cynthia didn't mind what was happening. Diane after all was a very attractive young lady, not to mention brilliant. Cynthia had always been attracted to brilliant people. It was what had attracted her to Cyrus. And to Cynthia, Diane's brilliance was her most attractive quality. It was the thing that set her apart from Dawn.

At last, Diane left Cynthia's breast and left a trail of fiery kisses down the length of her body. Once she reached Cynthia's waist, she spread her legs apart. After a few moments of hesitation, Diane finally moved in and began to move her tongue up the length of Cynthia's opening, causing her to gasp. Cynthia no longer cared about how she had gotten into her current situation. She was far too lost in the pleasure she was feeling.

After what seemed like an eternity, Diane finally pushed her tongue into Cynthia, causing her to moan loudly and arch her back. The feeling of the younger girl's tongue probing around inside her was simply astounding. She had never known such heights of pleasure before. As it went on, Cynthia couldn't distinguish between seconds and hours. Time had lost all meaning. It went on until finally Cynthia climaxed.

As Cynthia recovered from her high, she saw Diane get on her knees on the bed and look at her with an expression of shame and guilt. As if she had just committed a terrible crime. It was heartbreaking for Cynthia to see Diane look at her like that.

"Uh… sorry." Diane told her in a small whisper of a voice.

That was the last straw for Cynthia. With new energy, she suddenly got up and pinned Diane to the bed in one swift motion, causing Diane to yelp in surprise. She began to aggressively suck on Diane's neck, causing the younger girl to moan. Cynthia felt sure that what she was doing was probably going to leave a bruise, but she didn't give a damn. Her priority at that moment was giving Diane the pleasure that she had given her.

At last, Cynthia broke for air. "A beautiful girl like you has nothing to be sorry for."

With that, Cynthia snaked her hand down and began to stroke Diane's opening. Diane moaned as Cynthia gently moved her fingers up and down. All the shame that Cynthia had seen on her face was completely gone, replaced by an expression of someone lost in pleasure

"Do you want me to stop?" Cynthia asked in a husky whisper.

"…No." Diane begged.

Satisfied with her answer, Cynthia pushed two fingers into the younger girl, causing Diane to gasp and her eyes to widen. She thrust in and out of the moaning girl beneath her, slowly and gently increasing her pace with time.

"Cynthia… harder!" Diane begged.

Cynthia smirked as an idea came to her mind. She inserted another finger into her young lover and began to thrust harder and deeper, causing Diane to moan louder than before. As Cynthia built up the pace, she could feel Diane's inner walls closing in around her. It wasn't going to be much longer. Then with one final moan, Diane came to a hard climax. Cynthia watched Diane's face as her eyes went wide. Then they closed and her head went back onto the pillow.

Cynthia gently shook the younger girl's shoulder. "Diane?"

Diane was out like a light. It was clear to Cynthia that she went a little over the top. A part of her was actually quite pleased with herself for making Diane pass out. With both of them clearly spent, Cynthia pulled the covers over them both and pulled Diane close to her. She wasn't sure if what she was feeling for Diane was love, but Cynthia did know one thing. At that moment, she was the happiest she had been in years. And with that knowledge, Cynthia closed her eyes and went to sleep.

* * *

Dawn woke up in the middle of the night after having an odd dream about Dusk. She glanced over to the corner of the room and saw a sleeping Piplup huddled together with Pikachu and Lucario. The sight brought a smile to her face. With sleep somehow out of her grasp, Dawn decided to go for a little walk through the house. She thought that perhaps she could see if Carter was still awake.

As Dawn walked through the hall, she could hear a steady thumping sound in the distance. Out of curiosity, she headed towards the noise. Within moments, Dawn found that the sound was coming from Julius's study. The door to the room was open a crack. Dawn peaked in through open door and saw something she had never expected.

Carter was in there with the young maid, Miranda. Miranda was sitting on the desk wearing nothing but the cloth-like hat that went with her uniform. Carter was fully clothed but thrusting his hips into her. Miranda was moaning and had her arms around Carter. It was crystal clear to Dawn what the two of them were doing.

"Harder Master Carter!" Miranda moaned. "Please!"

"Yeah. I like when you beg for it." Carter grinned as he quickened his pace.

Dawn backed away in shock, tears streaming down her cheeks. She couldn't believe what she had just seen. Dawn ran away from that room as fast as her legs could carry her. She didn't know where she was going in the house and didn't care. After awhile Dawn ended up in a hall that led to a dead end. She slumped against the wall and began to cry.

As she began to slide down the wall, Dawn's finger pressed against a switch hidden in the decorative molding. Suddenly the wall to her right opened up into a large passageway. Her curiosity getting the better of herself, Dawn decided to investigate the passage. At the very least it took her mind off of what she had just seen Carter and Miranda doing in the study.

The dark passageway went on for several feet. It seemed endless until Dawn entered a much larger chamber. As soon as she stepped in, a spotlight came on from above, shining down upon a faceless white mannequin in the center of the room. The mannequin was dressed in a black uniform with a red letter R on the front of the shirt.

"A Team Rocket uniform?" Dawn whispered to herself. "What's that doing here?"

* * *

Ben had stayed up into the later hours in his hotel room of the night searching the Internet for everything he could on Julius Baron, Edger Gates, and John Braxton. What he had found would be interesting to anyone who read the society column of the newspaper. But there wasn't anything that one would consider scandalous. Everything Ben found on Julius said that after marrying into a rich family from Johto he went into politics. Edger Gates, although known as something of a lush, was a fairly successful lawyer who handled lawsuits. And John Braxton owned a small yet successful real-estate business stationed in Lavender Town.

It was what Ben wasn't finding that was he found interesting. Besides living in Lavender Town and perhaps attending the same local events, the three men hardly seemed to know each other. Yet Julius had claimed that he was an old friend with both Edger and John. Even more telling though was that there was hardly any record of the three before they found their way onto the society page. That by itself wasn't really out of the ordinary. But considering that the three men in question may have been members of Team Rocket, Ben found that fact rather suspicious. For all Ben knew, the three had taken on new identities after the Cubone massacre.

Ben glanced at the clock on his nightstand. It was thirty minutes past midnight. It didn't seem to Ben that he was going to find out anything more, so he decided to call it a night and put away his laptop. Not bothering to undress, Ben laid back onto the bed. After spending hours of staring at a computer screen, a little sleep was just what Ben needed.

* * *

Ben suddenly awoke to find that he was in an unfamiliar room that was not his hotel room. The mattress he was on smelled old, and he quickly realized that he was completely naked with only a white sheet covering his lower half. The room was dark, with the only source of light from the large window on his right that let in the light of the full moon. From what Ben could figure out, he was in some sort of old mansion. He knew of at least one such mansion in Lavender Town, a rather creepy structure known as the Pokemon Tower that its eccentric owner had designed to look like the head of a demon. What Ben couldn't figure out was how he could've gotten there.

"Hello Ben." A very familiar voice greeted, causing Ben to sit up. He saw Dusk standing before the bed wearing a short black silk robe. "It's real nice to see you again."

"Dusk, what…?" Ben began to ask.

"I overheard you talking to Ash in the alley earlier today." Dusk continued as she untied the string of her robe. "I had no idea you felt that way about me."

"What is this place?" Ben asked.

"It's called the Pokemon Tower. I've been staying here for the past few days." Dusk revealed as she came over and got on the bed. "There's also a fun Gastly and Gengar who live here. They're both out for the night though. We have this whole place to ourselves."

"…Dusk, I have to ask." Ben spoke after a moment. "Are you…?"

Dusk put a finger over his mouth to silence him. "Don't talk now. Just relax, okay?"

Dusk removed her robe to reveal that she was wearing nothing at all underneath. Ben was absolutely stunned by what he was seeing. Smiling, Dusk gently pushed Ben back onto the bed. Her haunting eyes had taken on a sort of predatory quality. She removed the sheet that was covering his lower half and got on top of him. Dusk moaned as Ben's already hardened rod slid into her.

Slowly Dusk began to buck her hips at a steady pace. Ben was simply paralyzed by the pleasure he was feeling, and memorized by Dusk's appearance. The light of the moon streaming in from the window seemed to give her an ethereal glow, enhanced by the eyes that had haunted him since he first met Dusk at Maiden's Peak. Gradually, Dusk's pace began to increase, her breasts bouncing with the movement of her hips. Ben felt that he was getting close to the edge, and he could feel that Dusk was getting close as well as her inner walls tightened around him. Dusk's movements became wilder, and at long last the two of them hit their climax at the same moment. Ben was simply mesmerized in the expression of pleasure on Dusk's face as she reached her high.

As Ben came down from his own high, Dusk got off him and walked over to the window. She grabbed onto her rear end and gave Ben a very seductive look. Ben seemed to know what Dusk wanted him to do to her. And he found he somehow still had the energy to give her what she desired. Almost as if by some sort of strange compulsion, he got off the bed and walked over to her. And after a few moments of hesitation he pushed Dusk against the window shoved his still hardened rod into her rear end, groaning as he inserted it into such a tight space,

Ben was simply astounded by the expression of ecstasy on Dusk's face as she experienced a mixture of pleasure and pain. He began to thrust into her at a slow pace, earning several deep moans from the blue haired girl. As he gradually increased speed, Dusk lifted her left leg to rest against the window. Ben snaked his right arm to Dusk's front and stuck two fingers into her opening, causing her eyes to widen. Dusk's moans became louder as Ben thrust harder into her, at the same time causing his fingers to penetrate deeper into her core.

After a blissful eternity, Ben could feel that he was reaching the edge and could feel Dusk's inner walls tightening around his fingers. Then with one final hard thrust, the two of them climaxed again at the same moment. Ben withdrew from Dusk and staggered backward. He suddenly felt as if he had been drained. His legs wobbled and he suddenly felt himself falling backwards as Dusk turned back to face him with a wide grin. Everything went black before Ben hit the floor.

The light of the morning sun shining in through the window awoke Ben from his slumber. He opened his eyes to find that he was back in his hotel room. Ben started to wonder if the whole encounter with Dusk was just a dream. It was hard to believe that though, as it felt so real. As Ben sat up, he suddenly found that he was wearing only his boxers. And he knew for a fact that he had gone to bed fully clothed.

* * *

Ben looked over at the nightstand to see what time it was and found a small piece of folded paper in front of the clock. Ben picked up the paper and unfolded it to find that something was written on it.

_'Last night was wonderful.'_ The note read. _'I hope you feel the same way. See you around. Dusk.'_

It was very clear to Ben that what happened last night wasn't a dream. It was unsettling, yet Ben was hardly surprised that Dusk would do something like that. In fact there were a few times when Ben had wanted Dusk to come to him in the night. But there was one thing about the encounter that troubled Ben a great deal. And that was the possibility that he might have just made love to a killer.

* * *

**Author's Note:** I'm going to let everyone in on a little secret. Some of the scenes in this chapter were written before I even started working on the outline for this story. I think part of the reason why I did that was to get those scenes out of the way so I could focus a little more on parts of the plot in this chapter. Of course I had to do a little editing to those scenes here and there to make them fit better with the rest of the story. Actually with the scene between Ben and Dusk, I ended up changing the location where it took place. My biggest concern is that I may have gone a little overboard. But this is sort of for those who enjoy a little "you know what" with their horror.

Please review and let me know what you think.


	6. The Missing Agents

**Author's Note:** I'd like to thank ultima-owner and Miss Starfire for their reviews of the last chapter. This is hardly my first time doing a story with steamy scenes like that, but I'm always a little afraid that I might've gone a little too overboard or something. Especially with this story since the last chapter was so full of those scenes. So I'm glad it turned out well.

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Pokemon.

* * *

Chapter 5: The Missing Agents

Cynthia had returned to the study to resume her work on the manuscript. Unfortunately, she wasn't getting very far. That bottle of wine she drank the night before was getting its revenge. Her head felt like it was in a vice. It was becoming clear to Cynthia that translating any more of the manuscript that morning was a long shot. Plus she needed Diane's help anyway. And as far as Cynthia knew, she was still asleep.

Miranda entered the room carrying a cup and saucer. "Here's the cup of coffee you requested Ms. Cynthia."

"Thanks Miranda, just set it on the table." Cynthia replied.

"It's a lovely morning out ma'am." Miranda informed her as she set the cup on the corner of the desk. "Your work might go a little faster if you let the sun in here."

With that, Miranda opened up the curtains behind the desk that Cynthia had purposely left closed. The blinding light of the morning sun aggravated Cynthia's hangover.

"There. Isn't that so much better than the light of that little old desk lamp?" Miranda cheerfully asked. Cynthia wanted to strangle that air headed maid.

"Excuse me, Ms. Miranda." A voice interrupted. Both Cynthia and Miranda looked to see Diane standing in the doorway with her arms crossed.

"Oh, is there something I can help you with Ms. Diane?" Miranda asked.

"You can help by leaving." Diane told her. "Cynthia and I have work to do."

"Very well." Miranda nodded and waked out of the room Diane.

Diane sighed and went over to close the curtains. "I'm sure she meant well, but honestly! You'd think it'd be obvious to anyone that you aren't feeling well."

"Don't worry about." Cynthia told her.

"You know you shouldn't push yourself if you're not feeling well." Diane pointed out. "Your body needs a little time to recover from all the alcohol you put into your system."

"I suppose the translation can wait until later." Cynthia relented.

"…Uh, Cynthia?" Diane nervously began. "About last night…"

"I don't have any regrets." Cynthia assured her. "Why, do you?"

"No! Of course not." Diane answered. "Last night was a very… power experience. If I had that night to do over again, I wouldn't change a thing. It's just… I feel like I took advantage of you."

At this, Cynthia chuckled. "I may have been a little drunk Diane, but I feel like I was the one who took advantage of you. Asking about whether or not you were single may have been my way of coming onto you. You're a very attractive young woman, you know."

"I'm actually surprised that you find me attractive." Diane admitted. "Even though my sister Dawn and I have the same face, people usually consider her to be the prettier one."

Cynthia suddenly pulled Diane onto her lap, causing the younger woman to cry out in surprise. "Now why do I find that hard to believe?"

Diane and Cynthia starred deeply into one another's eyes. In mere moments they became locked in a passionate kiss.

Sabrina suddenly walked into the room. "Excuse me."

Startled from their kiss, Cynthia turned her head to glare at the psychic gym leader. "Do you mind?"

"The door was open. I assumed that the two of you would not mind my intrusion." Sabrina replied with a raised eyebrow. "Am I to take it that I was wrong?"

"Very." Cynthia sighed. "Now what do you want?"

"There is a somewhat urgent matter that we all need to discuss." Sabrina explained. "When the two of you have a moment, the rest of us will be waiting down in the dining room."

"Fine, now will you please excuse us?" Cynthia requested.

Sabrina looked at the two quizzically for a moment before finally turning and leaving the room, shutting the door behind her. As soon as she was gone, Diane breathed a heavy sigh of relief.

"You okay?" Cynthia asked.

"Yeah. I just didn't expect anyone to walk in on us." Diane replied. "I guess I should've locked the door."

"Don't worry about." Cynthia chuckled.

"Well… I suppose we should meet up with the others if they wish to discuss something urgent." Diane decided.

"Oh, I think we can let them wait for a little while." Cynthia grinned.

Suddenly Cynthia began to kiss and suck on Diane's neck, causing the girl to moan with pleasure. It seemed that Ash and the others were going to be waiting for quite a few minutes.

* * *

Dawn stood out on the balcony looking out across the landscape. There was very much on her mind that morning. Not only was there the discovery of the secret room with the Team Rocket uniform, there was also the fact that Carter had been cheating on her. The two of them had been seeing each other for quite some time, and Dawn thought that they had something special. But it looked as though it was all a lie. Dawn had never felt more betrayed.

Carter suddenly walked onto the balcony. "Morning babe. I've been looking all over for you."

Dawn turned to face Carter with a furious glare. "Don't call me babe!"

"Whoa! Take it easy Dawn. What's the matter?" Carter asked.

"I saw you last night screwing that tramp of a maid, Miranda!" Dawn revealed. "Carter… how could you?"

"Oh… that." Carter responded. "Look Dawn, that was nothing."

"You call that nothing?" an outraged Dawn asked as tears came to her eyes.

"Miranda and I… we used to have a thing, okay?" Carter continued. "She wasn't ready for it to be over, so I threw her a bone last night. It didn't mean anything."

"How dumb do you think I am?" Dawn shouted.

"C'mon Dawn, surly we can come to an understanding." Carter assumed.

"Like hell!" Dawn told him. "I can't believe you'd do this!"

"Well maybe if you'd put out more!" Carter fired back.

With that, Dawn slapped Carter hard in the face. "We're through Carter! I'll be out of here by this afternoon. I never want to see you again!"

Dawn stormed off being very careful not let Carter see her tears. It was clear to her that Carter was not the man she thought he was. It seemed all that charm was just Carter's way of attracting women. For all Dawn knew, Miranda probably wasn't the only other woman Carter had been screwing around with. There were probably several more, and Dawn was not about to become part of his harem.

* * *

Ash waited in the dining room with Misty and Morty for the others to show up. Piplup was there as well with Pikachu and Lucario. Dawn had asked them to look after the little penguin Pokemon while she took care of something.

After a few minutes of waiting, Sabrina entered the room. "It may be a few minutes before Cynthia and Diane arrive."

"Why? What's up?" Ash asked.

"When I found Cynthia and Diane in Julius Baron's study, it looked as though they were making out." Sabrina revealed. "It seemed as though they were about to have a sexual encounter."

"Wait, what?" a surprised Misty exclaimed as she stood up from her chair.

"Seriously?" an equally surprised Ash asked.

"Uh, Sabrina. I don't think that was any of our business." Morty told her.

"Oh… no, I suppose not." Sabrina realized. "If you like, I can wipe the memory of what I just said from your minds with my powers."

"No thanks!" Ash, Misty, and Morty frantically said together.

"Very well." Sabrina replied.

Dawn walked into the room. "Hey guys. Sorry to keep you waiting."

"Everything okay Dawn?" a concerned Misty asked.

"Not really, but I don't wanna talk about it right now." Dawn replied. "I've got something more important to tell you guys anyway. Last night I found a secret room in the mansion that had a mannequin wearing a Team Rocket uniform."

"I knew it!" Ash exclaimed as he banged his fist on the table. "Baron was one of the men responsible for killing that Marowak!"

"Does this have something to do with Dusk?" Dawn asked.

"Yeah… we think so." Ash answered as he calmed down a bit. "Dawn, why don't you take us to where you found this uniform?"

"No problem." Dawn replied. "I remember exactly where that room is."

"You guys go on ahead. Sabrina and I will wait here for Cynthia and Diane." Morty decided.

With that, Ash, Misty, and Dawn headed for the secret room. Pikachu, Lucario, and Piplup followed close behind. Within a few minutes, the group had arrived at the dead end hallway where Dawn found the passageway. It took Dawn a moment to remember the precise spot in the wall that opened the door. Once it opened up, Ash went in first with the three Pokemon. Misty and Dawn hung back a little bit to talk.

"So… care to tell me what's going on?" Misty asked.

"…Carter and I broke up." Dawn answered after a moment.

"Dawn, I'm so sorry." A very sympathetic Misty replied. "What happened?"

"Last night I caught him doing it with the maid, Miranda." Dawn revealed. "I just… I never thought he'd do anything like that. And this morning he tried coming up with some lame excuse. That was when I broke it off."

"Wow… I really don't know what to say." Misty responded.

"I really fell hard for the guy." Dawn admitted. "He was so charming and caring. Not to mention a real good Coordinator. I thought I had found the perfect guy, but it was all an act. With me, he was just after one thing. And there's no way in hell he's getting that."

"So what're you going to do now?" Misty asked.

"Well as soon as this whole thing with Dusk is over, I'm getting as far away from this town as I can." Dawn answered. "I may go back home for awhile to clear my head."

"I'm sure it'll get better after a little time." Misty said encouragingly.

"Yeah, you're probably right." Dawn agreed. "You know, you're really lucky Misty to have a guy like Ash. I'm sure he'd never to anything like what Carter did."

"No, I know Ash would never betray me like that." Misty agreed. "Though he is a little too friendly with this one Coordinator I know."

"What?" Dawn asked.

"Oh, never mind." Misty innocently replied.

At last the group reached the main chamber at the end of the long dark corridor. But when the spotlight shined down on the center of the room, there was nothing there.

"What the…? I swear that mannequin was right there!" Dawn insisted.

"Baron must know we're onto him." Ash assumed. "C'mon! We better get back to the others!"

* * *

Morty starred out the dining room window at the Tower of Memories as he and Sabrina waited for the others to return. His years of training to heighten his awareness told him that there was something very wrong at that tower. It was something that he should've picked up on the moment he and the others arrived in Lavender Town. If he had, then perhaps he and the others could've prevented at least one death. Morty was distracted from his thoughts when Sabrina nearly fell out of her chair.

"Are you okay?" a very concerned Morty asked as he came over.

"I'm fine." Sabrina assured him. "I just overexerted myself a bit."

"What were you trying to do?" Morty asked.

"I was calling for some help." She explained. "If things with the Berlitz sisters get too out of hand, we'll need backup."

"So you tried contacting _him_." Morty realized. "Were you able to get a hold of him?"

"I managed to locate him at Mt. Silver." Sabrina confirmed. "He told me he'd be here in an hour or so."

At that moment, Ash returned with the others. "The Team Rocket uniform is gone. Baron must be onto us."

"So what now?" Morty wondered.

"Maybe we should go tell Officer Jenny." Misty suggested.

"And tell her what, that an angry Pokemon ghost is trying to kill Mr. Baron because he might've been in Team Rocket?" Dawn pointed out. "She'd probably throw us out of her office."

Before the discussion could go further, Cynthia finally arrived with Diane. "Sorry to keep everyone waiting. Now what's so important?"

"Long story short, Baron was one of the Team Rocket members that killed that mother Marowak twenty years ago, and now her ghost is out for revenge." Ash explained.

"You'll forgive me if I find the part about the ghost a little hard to believe." Diane remarked.

"Oh for god's sake Diane! Would it kill you to take a leap just once?" Dawn asked. "Dusk is involved in all this because she can talk to ghosts you know!"

"I will admit that it's possible for Dusk to communicate with Ghost-type Pokemon, but I'm still quite skeptical that actual ghosts exist." Diane responded.

"Okay, cool it you two." Ash interrupted. "You two can debate that later, right now I think Misty's right. We should tell Officer Jenny."

"Dawn does have a point, however." Sabrina interjected. "We currently have no proof that Mr. Baron was even in Team Rocket. And we don't even know for sure that the Marowak's spirit is behind all this."

"I might know someone who can help with that." Ash told them. "C'mon, let's get going."

Ash and the others left the mansion to head into town. Within a few minutes of walking they had reached the Lavender Town Police Station. Ben was waiting for the right in front of the building.

"Looks like we all had the same idea." Ben greeted.

"Norris, what the hell are you doing here?" Diane demanded.

"Relax Diane, Ben isn't the guy you think he is." Ash told her. "Turns out he knows Dusk."

"You know our sister?" a surprised Dawn asked.

"We met years ago at Maiden's Peak." Ben confirmed. "You wouldn't believe that little adventure we went on."

"I'm a little more open to that stuff now actually." Dawn admitted. "Not sure if I can say the same for Diane though."

"Dusk pretty much changed my life." Ben admitted. "I've spent years trying to track her down just to see her again. I can't believe she's capable of killing those two men, but… I have to find out for sure."

"Then let's figure out what's going on." Ash told him. "What'd you find out about Baron and the others?"

"It's what I didn't find that was interesting." Ben answered. "There's barely any record of Baron, Gates, or Braxton before they came to Lavender Town. It could be that they took new identities when they left Team Rocket. But there's no way to tell for sure. You dig up anything on your end?"

"Dawn found Baron's old Team Rocket uniform last night in some secret room at the mansion." Ash revealed. "It was gone when she tried to show it to us this morning though."

"That figures." Ben scowled. "With all that's going on, Baron's probably pretty jumpy. Now he's trying to get rid of any evidence that could tie him to what happened. So what do we do now?"

"We go ahead and tell Officer Jenny what we know." Morty replied. "After that, we'll see what happens."

With that, the group went inside the police station. They found Shannon at the front desk talking to Clint. Both of them had very disappointed expressions on their faces.

"Officer Jenny? We have something important to tell you." Ash informed Shannon, getting her and Clint's attention.

"What, did one of you remember something about the day Edger Gates' body was found?" Shannon asked.

"Not exactly." Misty replied.

"Officer Jenny, I'm Ben Norris with Pokemon World News." Ben introduced. "We believe that Julius Baron, Edger Gates, and John Braxton were the ones who murdered that Marowak and her children twenty years ago. And we're sure that it has something to do with what's going on now."

"Holy shit!" a stunned Clint exclaimed.

"Are you all absolutely sure about that?" an equally shocked Shannon asked.

"I found an old Team Rocket uniform at the Baron mansion last night." Dawn informed her.

"Well, this would explain why Edger and John were killed." Clint admitted.

"My aunt was in charge here when the Cubone massacre happened twenty years ago." Shannon revealed. "She even almost caught the three who killed that poor Marowak and her children. Of course they got away before she could get a good look at their faces. But what my aunt saw that day made her sick to her stomach. She transferred to Celadon PD after that incident."

"So what, some angry Pokemon activist found out those three were the killers and went after Edger and John?" Clint theorized.

"That is one possibility." Sabrina admitted. "The other possibility might be harder for you to believe."

"Oh yeah? Try us." Shannon dared.

"We think the ghost of the murdered Marowak killed those two men out of revenge." Morty informed them.

Shannon looked at Ash and the others as if they had just told her the sky was green. "…You have got to be kidding."

"There is one way to find out for sure." Morty continued. "I've been thinking that if we go to the Tower of Memories where the murder took place, we might be able to uncover something."

"As strange as this sounds Shannon, this ghost thing might be the only thing that explains how Edger and John died." Clint admitted. "We both know what the lab just told us. The tox screen found no trace of poison in their blood."

"…Oh fine." Shannon relented as she got up from their chair. "This is the only damn lead on this case that makes sense. The murder happened on the top floor of the tower. I'll take you guys there." With that, the entire group left the police station.

* * *

Mayor Fuji stood out across the street from the police station as Ash and the others left and headed for the Tower of Memories. The old man sighed as he looked up at the old tower looming in the distance.

"I think the time has finally come to put this dark matter to rest." Mayor Fuji remarked. "Wouldn't you agree Ms. Dusk?"

Dusk walked up from behind with Helen to stand next to the old man. "You're right Mr. Mayor. This whole thing has gone on for too long. I just wish Ash and the others hadn't gotten involved."

"I'd think you'd be more welcome to their help." Mayor Fuji assumed. "Why would you not want them involved?"

"Well my sisters don't get me at all." Dusk explained. "And Ash, well… I think this would be pretty hard on him."

"Yes, from the way his Pikachu and Lucario have been taken care of I could tell that the young man cares about Pokemon a great deal." Mayor Fuji agreed. "Digging into this matter will be very difficult for him. But then he is an Aura Guardian. Bringing peace and justice to the world is in his nature, just as it is in your nature to help those who have passed on."

"Yeah, I guess you're right." Dusk sighed.

"Mask yamask ya." Helen spoke to Dusk.

"You're right Helen. We should get going too." Dusk agreed. "One way or another, this is going to end."

* * *

**Author's Note:** Originally it was going to be either Ash or Misty who walked in on Cynthia and Diane when they started making out. But the more I thought about, I decided that Sabrina would be a better choice. For one thing, it gave me a chance to do more with her character. I feel like I haven't done enough with Sabrina in this AU so far, which is a real shame since she's one of my favorite Kanto gym leaders (the others being Misty and Giovanni). I should do a story that focuses on her sometime in the future.

Anyway, we're nearing the climax of this story. I feel I should warn everyone that the next chapter is going to be pretty dark. Probably one of the darkest scenes I've done for a story yet. There might also be a slight delay in getting it up, but it should be done by the end of this weekend at the very latest. So stay tuned.

Please review and let me know what you think.


	7. The Blood Soaked Tower

**Author's Note:** My original plan was to wait and put this chapter up on Sunday after I did some work on another story I had put on hold. But with all the coverage on Pokemon X and Y, it's been hard to concentrate on any non-Pokemon related stories (there are so many Mega Evolutions!). And since we are getting fairly close to the climax, it seems silly to delay.

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Pokemon.

* * *

Chapter 6: The Blood Soaked Tower

It was not long before Ash and the others had arrived at the Tower of Memories. As soon as they arrived, the group headed straight for the top floor of the tower, with Shannon leading the way. Each floor of the tower was filled almost completely with the tombstones of Pokemon that had passed on. And as they ascended to the top floor, everyone noticed that the number of mourners and visitors to the tower seemed to decrease as they went. Ash had also noticed a sort of dark oppressive atmosphere, as they got further up.

At last they had reached the topmost floor of the tower. The gravestones were arranged in a circular pattern, allowing for a wide-open section of floor in the center. The oppressive atmosphere that Ash had been feeling was at its strongest on that floor. It was almost as if something was screaming at them to leave.

"So… this is where it really happened?" Dawn asked as she looked around while Piplup skittishly hid behind her leg.

"Yep. The bodies were found right there in the middle of the floor there." Shannon confirmed. "According to what little my aunt told me, the first three she saw after those three scumbags from Team Rocket escaped was the one Cubone crying over the Marowak's body. The bodies of the other four Cubone were all gathered in a pile."

Misty noticed a large very dark-red stain in the middle of the floor. "Is… is that spot what I think it is?"

"Yeah, that's the blood of the Marowak and her children." Shannon answered. "No one knows why, but nobody has ever been able to wipe all of it away."

"I sense a presence here." Sabrina informed everyone. "Morty, do you sense it as well?"

"Yes. We're not alone." Morty confirmed.

"I've been feeling the same thing." Ash revealed as he suddenly began walking towards the stain with Pikachu and Lucario.

"Ash, what are you doing?" a concerned Misty asked.

"I think… there's something we're supposed to see." Ash replied as he kneeled down.

Ash touched his hand to the bloodstain on the floor. As soon as he did, the stain began to glow with an unearthly crimson light. Suddenly the room echoed with an inhuman shriek that caused Ash to stand back up. The entire chamber was soon enveloped with a blinding white light.

* * *

_The light cleared and everything inside the chamber suddenly looked as though it was an old black and white film. Sitting in the center of the room was a bipedal almost reptile-like Pokemon with a white skull-like head. Resting at its side was a single white bone that had been fashioned to be used as a club. Everyone in the group recognized the Pokemon as a Marowak. Sitting against the Marowak as if sleeping was a smaller version of a Pokemon wearing a similar skull as a mask. It was a Cubone._

_Two more Cubone were playing behind the Marowak by sparing with their clubs. Another two sat in front eating._

_"What's going on?" Diane wondered. "What is this we're seeing?"_

_"I think… this is what happened on that day." A stunned Ben assumed._

_Suddenly horrid cries of pain rang through the tower, alerting Marowak and her children. The cries were those of the other Cubone and Marowak living in the tower._

_"Sir, we've secured all the floors below." A voice reported from the staircase. "But I'm afraid someone has alerted the cops. I'm not sure we'll be able to get a full haul."_

_"Just get everything you can." A familiar voice ordered. "We've gotten a lot of orders for these skulls, so there's a lot of money on this."_

_"That voice!" Cynthia recognized. "It's…"_

_"Baron!" Ash finished._

_"I'm going with John and Edger to secure the top floor." Julius's voice continued. "Let's get this wrapped up quick."_

_"Yes sir!" the other voice replied._

_Footsteps then began to come up the staircase. Marowak quickly stood up and picked up her club. The Cubone that had cuddled up next to her quickly ran and hid behind one of the tombstones at the far edge of the room. Entering the room were younger versions of Julius, Edger, and John. All three of the men were wearing the standard Team Rocket uniform. The four Cubone that had failed to hide like their sibling had done all huddled together behind their mother. Marowak meanwhile had taken a fighting stance to defend her children._

_"Another damn Marowak." An annoyed Edger observed. "Their skulls are pretty much worthless, since they're fused to the heads. All these damn things have done is get in our way."_

_"On the other hand, there are four Cubone here that are ripe for the picking." Julius pointed out. "We'll grab their skulls and leave."_

_"I don't like this, you guys." John told them. "Stealing Pokemon to sell is one thing, but this… I feel like we shouldn't be doing this."_

_"If you're going to be so squeamish about this, just watch the door!" Julius ordered. "Edger and I can take care of this without you."_

_"Hey, looks like that Marowak wants a fight." Edger grinned._

_"Then let's not disappoint." Julius decided._

_Both Edger and Julius reached behind to the back of their belts and pulled out extendable black poles with electrified metal tips. Marowak heroically charged at Julius, but Edger quickly came around from behind and slammed his weapon hard into Marowak's back, causing her to cry out and drop her club. Edger then kicked the mother Pokemon to the ground and began stomping on her. Julius joined in and slammed his pole weapon very hard into Marowak's skull, causing a loud horrid cracking sound. Blood began to pour from the wound, and unlike the rest of the surroundings it was red._

_Ash's eyes went wide with horror and disgust as he backed away from the unspeakable sight before him. The others in the group shared his reaction. Even Sabrina was visibly appalled._

_"Well, looks like all that's left is to beat those four Cubone." Edger observed._

_"I think we've wasted enough time with these beatings." Julius decided._

_Suddenly Julius pulled out a pistol and fired four shots. The Cubone fell to the ground on top of one another._

_"Whoa! How long have you had that thing?" a surprised Edger asked._

_"I've had it since we arrived." Julius revealed. "But I've been saving the bullets for when we really needed them."_

_Suddenly sounds began to come from Marowak from the ground. Ash and the others were horrified to find that Marowak was still alive, and she had seen all four of her children get slaughtered._

_"Oh, so that hit wasn't enough to finish you, eh?' Julius indifferently observed. "No matter."_

_Julius fired his gun down at Marowak, shooting the wounded Pokemon in the back. More red blood began to pour from Marowak's body and joined with the blood of her slain children._

_"…Dear god man!" an appalled John exclaimed._

_"Damn it John, will you grow a spine already?" an annoyed Julius shouted. "Our orders were to gather all the Cubone skulls we could by any means necessary!"_

_"But this… this is crossing the line!" John declared. "And in this tower of all places! Don't you guys get it? This is sacred ground!"_

_"Don't be so mellowdramatic John. This tower's just a place where people dump their Pokemon after they keel over." Edger scoffed. "It's nothing more than a glorified garbage dump made to look pretty. Now let's just grab those skulls and get the hell out of here."_

_"This is the police!" a voice exactly like Shannon's called up from the stairwell. "Stay right were you are! You're all under arrest!"_

_"Damn!" Edger cursed._

_"We have to get out of here!" a panicked John told them._

_Another Officer Jenny arrived on the scene. But only a second after she did, John threw a small black ball to the ground, filling the chamber with black smoke. When the smoke cleared, all three Team Rocket agents were gone. Officer Jenny looked around to see where the three might've gone. She knew that they couldn't have run past her. The only other way out was a large window on the far side of the room. But they were all on the top floor. A jump from that height would kill anyone._

_Soon after the three left, Officer Jenny noticed the horrid scene on the ground before her. She brought her hand to her mouth to stifle a cry. Just then the one remaining Cubone came out from hiding and sat down before Marowak's body. Its cries of sorrow echoed through the entire chamber. With the scene at its tragic end, the room went dim and the surviving Cubone vanished with Officer Jenny. But the bodies of Marowak and her four other children remained. Suddenly their bodies began to rapidly decompose and melt into the expanding pool of blood, their skulls sinking into the red liquid. Seconds later there was another blinding flash of light._

* * *

When the light had faded, everything inside the chamber was as it was before. Everyone was trying to recover from the horrid atrocity they had just witnessed. Shannon wound up hurrying over to a small wastebasket at the outer wall of the chamber and vomited into it.

"…Dear God in heaven!" Clint uttered.

"How could they… how could they be so… so cruel?" a very upset Dawn wondered.

"It was business my dear." A familiar voice interrupted. Everyone looked to see Julius standing in the doorway of the stairwell. "As members of Team Rocket, we all had our orders."

"You… you bastard!" Ash shouted at Julius. "You call the thing you and those friends of yours business? That was murder!"

"Spare me the dramatics, young man." Julius scoffed. "I'll admit that I regret some of the things I did during my time with Team Rocket, but Pokemon are just beasts. If they can't contribute any use to society or be effective in battle, they're just vermin. All those Cubone and Marowak infecting this tower were no different."

"Mr. Baron, are you admitting that you were a part of the group that raided the Tower of Memories twenty years ago?" Shannon asked after regaining her composure.

"Hmm… I suppose I am." Julius confirmed. "After that little phenomenon we all just witnessed, the Persian is out of the bag, so to speak."

"Then I am placing you under arrest!" Shannon proclaimed.

"I'm afraid that's not going to happen." Julius told them as he suddenly pulled out the same pistol he had used to kill Marowak and her family years ago. "I really didn't want it to come to this, but I'm afraid you've all learned too much."

"So you're going to kill us too?" Cynthia realized.

"I am doing what is necessary, just as I did twenty years ago." Julius declared. "After all, I have my career to think about, and I can't afford to let this little secret get out. Now then, if you'll all just cooperate I'll make this as painless as possible."

"That toy of yours will do you no good." Sabrina told him.

Suddenly Julius's pistol glowed with a faint blue aura and was crushed like a tin can. Startled, the ex-Team Rocket member threw his useless weapon to the ground.

"You think you can just bury this and pretend it never happened?" an outraged Ash asked him. "I should do to you what you and Gates did to Marowak and her children!"

"I doubt you'd have the stomach for that, boy." Julius scoffed.

Suddenly a white whirlwind appeared around Julius, startling everyone. The wind looked at though it was filled with the spectral forms of Cubone skulls. In moments the whirlwind split and the skulls forced their way into Julius's mouth. His neck bulged as they slid down his throat. Once all the spectral skulls had gone into him, Julius fell to the floor and began to violently convulse. His arms and legs failed around and his elbows and knees bent in ways they were never supposed to. After a few agonizing moments, Julius finally stopped moving. His silver hair had turned completely white and an expression of utter terror was frozen on his face.

Clint went over and took Julius's pulse. "He's dead."

"Oh dear, looks like I was too late again." A voice suddenly spoke. Everyone looked again to see Dusk standing in the doorway with Helen the Yamask floating by her side.

"Dusk, we have to know. Do you have anything to do with these deaths?" Diane asked.

"You think _I_ had something to do with killing Mr. Baron and the others?" Dusk responded with a hurt expression. "You're mean, Diane!"

"Dusk, just tell us what's going on." Ash requested.

"I've been trying to calm down mother Merowak's spirit." Dusk explained. "She's very angry. I've met a lot of other angry spirits in the past, but mother Marowak's anger has gotten really bad. Giratina and I tried stopping her from killing Mr. Gates and Mr. Braxton, but she was way to fast for us. Somehow she got inside them before we could make a move."

"If Marowak's ghost has been giving you so much trouble, why didn't you ask for our help?" Misty asked.

"It's usually better if I work alone." Dusk replied. "Besides, I somehow knew this would be hard on Ash. I just thought it'd be easier on everyone if I took care of things on everyone if I took care of things on my own."

"Well, with Baron dead it looks like it's all over." Ben assumed.

"It's not over yet Ben." Dusk told him. "Killing Mr. Baron didn't change anything."

Before anyone could ask what she meant, a purple light suddenly appeared in the center of the chamber. The light took the form of Marowak. Only her form was much different from when she was alive. Her brown flesh had turned a sickly grey and a large hole had rotted all the way through the center of her torso. Her eyes had become empty sockets and streaks of dried blood ran down her cheeks like tears. The end of the bone she used as a club was covered in dried blood as well.

"That's Marowak's ghost?" a shocked Dawn realized.

"All the anger and sadness she's held onto all these years has turned her into a vengeful spirit." Dusk explained. "Even killing the ones who murdered her and her family isn't enough to calm her. There's only one way to do that now."

"I get it. You've been trying to beat her in a battle." Ash realized.

"Let's see… this room's too small for Giratina. So I guess I'll go with plan B." Dusk decided as she threw a Pokeball. "Let's play, Dusknoir!"

Emerging from the ball was a ghost-like entity with an almost round dark-grey body with well-developed arms and a tail instead of legs. Its hands were a lighter shade of grey and its head resembled a grey hood that showed a single red eye. Atop its head was a short thick yellow antenna, and decorating its torso were yellow lines resembling a sort of face. Marowak cried out in a putrid voice and suddenly four ghostly Cubone skulls flew out of the hole in her chest. They all took the form of undead Cubone similar in appearance to Marowak.

"Marowak's murdered children!" Misty identified. "They're ghosts too?"

"Oh no! Looks like I screwed up." Dusk realized. "I should've realized that mother Marowak's children were helping her. They killed Mr. Gates and the others to keep me and Giratina distracted while their mother got away."

"Pikachu, use Thunder Bolt on all of them!" Ash commanded.

"Pik… a… CHUUU!" the electric rodent cried out as he zapped the five specters with a bolt of yellow electricity. But when the attack ended, all five ghosts were unharmed.

"It didn't work!" Ash observed. "Are normal attacks useless against them?"

"They're Ground-types, silly." Dusk chuckled. "They may be dead, but they're still immune to Electric attacks."

"Okay then, we'll try this!" Ash decided as he pulled out a Pokeball. "Go Serperior!"

Bursting out of Ash's thrown ball was a ten-foot long snake with a mainly dark-green body and a white face with red eyes. Growing from her neck was a sort of long curled collar with a yellow interior, and extending up from the back of her head were what looked like a pair of pointed ears that were yellow on the inside. Growing from the end of her tail was a sprig of leaves that she waved in front of her face like a fan.

"I'll help too!" Misty decided as she threw her own ball. "Go Corsola!"

Emerging from Misty's Pokeball was a round rock-like creature that was pink on top and white on the bottom. Growing out from the top were four long horns that looked like branches of coral. The creature stood on four stubby legs and two stubby arms on its front.

"Go Gengar!" Morty called out with the throw of his own Pokeball.

Coming out of Morty's ball was a black creature with a round body and short arms and legs. Its back was covered in spiked fur, with two of the points resembling ears. Its face was made up of two red eyes and a sinister grin.

"Go Alakazam!" Sabrina called with her own throw.

Bursting out of the ball was a somewhat humanoid creature with a large fox-like head that had long whiskers similar to a mustache. Its torso, lower legs, and forearms were brown, while the rest of its body was tan. In each hand it held a large silver spoon.

"Dusk, we'll take care of the Cubone." Ash told her. "You and Dusknoir just worry about Marowak."

"Oh… okay then." Dusk agreed.

The four ghostly Cubone charged towards Ash and the others with their clubs held high. One of them struck Serperior in the side of her face.

"Serperior, use Vine Whip!" Ash commanded.

The grass snake extended two green vines from her back and struck the undead Cubone. The ghost was thrown into the far wall and was knocked out. Or at least that's how it had seemed. Meanwhile, the second Cubone charged at Gengar but missed as the shadow Pokemon sidestepped the attack.

"Gengar, use Shadow Ball!" Morty ordered.

Gengar raised its arms forward and created a ball of black energy. The ghost Pokemon launched the ball at the Cubone ghost, knocking it back to the same sport where its sibling had landed.

"Corsola, use Bubble Beam!" Misty commanded.

"Alakazam, use Psybeam!" Sabrina ordered.

Corsola fired a concentrated beam of bubbles at one of the remaining Cubone, while Alakazam blasted the other with a ray of multicolored light. The two ghosts were knocked to the floor and appeared unconscious. Marowak and Dusknoir meanwhile were still just about to face off. Marowak threw her club high into the air way past Dusknoir. A second later it came back around and struck the reaper Pokemon in the back. The club continued to spin and came back to Marowak's hand.

"Dusknoir, use Ice Punch!" Dusk commanded.

Dusknoir flew in as its raised fist became shrouded in an icy mist. Its punch struck Marowak in the chest and caused a patch of ice to form. The undead Pokemon recovered and swung her club at Dusknoir. But the reaper Pokemon quickly moved out of the way of the attack.

"Use Ice Punch once more!" Dusk ordered.

The reaper Pokemon hit Marowak with another icy punch to the chest, knocking her back at least a foot. The undead Pokemon fell to one knee.

"Let's finish it Dusknoir!" Dusk decided. "Shadow Punch!"

Dusknoir raised its fist again and launched an even larger fist made of shadows at Marowak. The Pokemon ghost was knocked back and fell to the ground unconscious. With the battle over, Marowak and her four children suddenly began to glow with a golden light. The light soon faded and the five Pokemon were all on their feet again. They had gained their original forms, only all of them were transparent.

After Ash and the others called back their respective Pokemon, Dusk approached Marowak and her children. "It's over now. The people who hurt you have paid, and you'll be happy to know that your other child has grown into a strong Marowak. You and your family can leave in peace."

Marowak closed her eyes and she and her children began to rise into the air. In moments the five Pokemon flashed into five golden balls of light and vanished.

"So is it over now?' Ben asked.

"Yep. Mother Marowak and her children have finally moved on." Dusk answered happily.

"Then in that case, it's time for you to come with us Dusk." Diane interrupted. "You need help."

"I'm not going with you! So there!" Dusk told her as she stuck her tongue out.

"Please Dusk, you're not well!" Dawn begged.

"There's no use in arguing with us Dusk. The only way out of this chamber is past us." Diane pointed out.

At this Dusk grinned. "Don't be silly, sister. There's another way out of this room."

Suddenly Dusk dashed to the window of the chamber. The very same window Julius and his comrades had possibly used as an escape years before. Before anyone could stop her, Dusk jumped out with Helen flying close behind.

"Dusk!" a horrified Ben called out.

"Let's play… Giratina!" Dusk called from outside as she fell. From outside there was a flash of light, and soon Dusk floated before the window with Helen on Giratina's back. "Well, I guess this is goodbye again. It was fun seeing you all."

"Dusk, wait!" Ben called. But Giratina had already begun to fly off. "Damn! I can't let her get away from me again."

"Hey Sabrina!" Ash spoke.

"On it." The psychic gym leader nodded.

Sabrina closed her eyes and the chamber was enveloped in a flash of blue light. The light faded and the entire group was on the ground right outside the tower.

Dusk noticed their appearance from above, causing Giratina to stop. "Oh wow! That was a neat trick."

"You're not going to escape this time Dusk!" Diane declared as she threw a Pokeball. "Go forth, Dialga!"

Bursting out of the thrown ball was a very large dark-blue four-legged dragon with a long neck and tail, making it look almost like a dinosaur. It had a long crest extending from the back of its head, and it had light-blue stripes running along parts of its body. The dragon's head had two long metal horns that extended into fang-like protrusions near its mouth. Covering its chest was a large metal plate with a blue diamond-shaped gemstone in the center, and near the dragon's rear was a large fin-like blade.

"I'm not letting you get away either!" Dawn declared as she threw her own ball. "Palkia, spotlight!"

Coming out of the ball was another large dragon that was almost light purple in color and stood on two legs. It had well-developed arms, with its forearms resembling armored gauntlets. Embedded in each of the dragon's shoulders was a large pink pearl, and purple stripes ran along parts of its body. On the back of its long neck was a fin-like crest that extended down to wings on its back.

"So you both want to play, huh?" Dusk observed with an almost mad grin. "Fine then. Let's play."

* * *

**Author's Note:** The hardest part of writing this chapter was the murder scene. I won't lie, I almost teared up a little towards the end of it. This I think was my first time writing a scene that was this dark. My original plan actually was to show more of the massacre, but I felt it was a little much. Besides, the murder of Marowak and her four children was the important scene in this case. I thought that showing any other parts of the massacre would've been pointless. By the way, the hold though Marowak's chest in her ghost form was meant as an homage to the Hollows from _Bleach_.

Please review and let me know what you think.


	8. Creation Sisters

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Pokemon.

* * *

Chapter 7: Creation Sisters

"You two don't have to do this." Ash told Dawn and Diane. "I'm sure there's another way."

"Sorry Ash, but this is the only way to end this." Dawn told him. "Dusk isn't going to come along quietly, so we're going to have to bring her down."

"Do not worry Ash. I'm sure this won't take long." Diane assured him.

With that, Dawn and Piplup got onto Palkia's back, while Diane got on Dialga's. The two dragons and their riders flew up into the air to face Dusk and Giratina while Ash and the others watched from the ground.

"It's finally begun." Sabrina observed. "Those sisters are going to clash."

"Even with Giratina, there's no way Dusk can stand up to both of them!" a concerned Ben declared.

"Perhaps this is for the best." Cynthia proposed. "Maybe by working together, Diane and Dawn can finally work things out."

"C'mon Cynthia, you know it's not going to be that simple." Ash told her. "This is going to turn into a three-way battle and we all know it."

"And if this fight gets too out of hand, this whole town may end up being destroyed." Morty added.

Back up in the sky, the sisters were still preparing to face off. It seemed like Dusk and Giratina were sizing the others up.

Diane made the first move. "Dialga, attack Giratina with Flash Cannon!"

"Shadow Force!" Dusk quickly commanded.

Dialga fired a beam of white light from the diamond on its chest at Giratina. But before it could hit, Giratina suddenly vanished into thin air. Dawn and Diane began to look around for where Giratina might emerge. Suddenly, a massive black shadow with red eyes appeared and struck Palkia in the back, hurling the space dragon forward a few feet. The shadow quickly transformed back into Giratina.

Dusk giggled at the mischief she had caused. "Now used Aura Sphere!"

The plates on the phantom dragon opened to reveal its mouth, allowing a ball of blue light to form. Giratina launched the ball Dialga, striking the dragon of time in the chest.

"Palkia, use Spacial Rend!" Dawn commanded.

Upon recovering from the last attack, Palkia quickly flung a large blade of pink energy from its right forearm at Giratina. The phantom dragon was struck in the chest before it had a chance to get out of the way.

"Palkia's attack looks like it did a lot of damage." Misty observed from the ground.

"Okay Palkia, use Aqua Tail!" Dawn ordered.

"Dialga, use Roar of Time!" Diane commanded.

Palkia flew full speed at Giratina as its tail became shrouded in water. But just as the space dragon came in close to deliver its attack, Dialga fired a beam of blue energy from its mouth that hit Palkia in the back. Dawn, Piplup, and Palkia all seemed to move in slow motion for a few seconds as they recovered from the attack. Palkia turned around and growled at Dialga, seemingly forgetting all about its original opponent.

Dawn glared at Diane. "Damn it Diane! What the hell was that?"

"I was trying to bring this battle to a speedy end!" Diane told her. "If you hadn't blindly charged in to try and take on Dusk single handedly, we wouldn't be having this conversation!"

"Look, I can take care of this by myself! Why don't you just stay the hell out of my way?" Dawn shot back. "You've already caused more than enough damage!"

"And just what do you mean by that?" Diane demanded to know.

"You know damn well what I mean!" Dawn replied. "If you had watched Dusk like you were supposed to all those years ago, we wouldn't be in this mess!"

"I'm so sick of you blaming all of that on me!" Diane shouted.

"Yeah? Well deal with it!" Dawn shot back. "Palkia, use Aura Sphere on Dialga!"

Palkia roared as a large ball of blue light formed in its right claw. The space dragon flung the ball at Dialga, striking the temporal dragon in the face.

"Damn you!" Diane cursed. "Dialga, attack Palkia with Dragon Pulse!"

Dialga opened its mouth and fired a large ball of blue-green light at Palkia. The dragon of space was struck in the chest and knocked back in the air slightly. Plakia recovered and flew full speed towards Dialga.

"They're… fighting again." Dusk observed with a sad expression. "Giratina… use Draco Meteor!"

Giratina raised its head and fired a ball of orange light high into the air. The ball exploded and several small meteorites rained down. Most of the falling rocks hit Dialga and Palkia, but some rained down upon the surrounding area as well. Ash and Lucario both raised their arms and erected a barrier of blue light to protect everyone from the barrage. After a moment, the rain of meteors caused by Giratina's attack finally stopped.

"This is nuts!" Clint exclaimed. "If those three keep at it this whole town going to get creamed!"

"Damn it!" Ash cursed as he got out a Pokeball. "Come on out, Ho-Oh!"

Soaring out of the thrown ball was a massive red bird with a mass of golden tail feathers and a white underside. Shimmering green feathers rimmed the bird's wings and adoring its head was a golden crest. Ho-Oh landed on the ground to allow Ash, Pikachu, and Lucario to get on its back.

"Ash, what're you doing?" Misty asked.

"I'm putting an end to this right now!" Ash told her.

With that, Ho-Oh took off into the air towards the three dragons clashing in the sky above. All three were so focused on attacking one another that they did not notice Ash's arrival.

"Ho-Oh, use Sacred Fire on Dialga!" Ash commanded.

Ho-Oh's eyes began to glow blue and its body became enveloped in rose-colored flames that remarkable did not harm the passengers on its back. With a flap of its wings, Ho-Oh sent forth a wave of flames that struck Dialga in its left side. The flames subsided and while Diane was unharmed, Dialga's body was smoking and the armored parts of its body were glowing red-hot. At that point, the attention of all three sisters was focused on Ash.

"Ho-Oh's sacred flames managed to burn Dialga." Morty observed.

"Will you three cut it out already?" Ash shouted at the three sisters. "You keep this up, and the whole town's gonna be torn apart!"

"Stay out of this Ash!" Dawn shot back. "Palkia, use Hydro Pump on Ho-Oh!"

Palkia shot a powerful stream of water from its mouth at Ho-Oh! The great phoenix flew up slightly to avoid the attack. But a split second later, a massive black shadow emerged from behind and rammed into Ho-Oh's back, nearly knocking the great bird out of the sky. The shadow soon turned into Dusk and Giratina.

"Dusk, what're you doing?" Ash asked.

"Please Ash… it's better if you don't get involved in this." Dusk told him.

"Dialga, use Roar of Time!" Diane ordered.

Dialga roared and fired a beam of blue light at Ho-Oh. The phoenix managed to evade the attack only to be hit from below by one of Palkia's Spacial Rend attack.

"Now they're all ganging up on Ash?" a surprised Bed observed.

"Even with Ho-Oh, Ash can't fight all three of them on his own." Misty spoke as she threw a Pokeball. "Go Kyogre!"

Bursting out of the ball was a massive blue and white orca with sunken yellow eyes. Its huge pectoral fins were like wings, and on the end of each one were four white square protrusions that resembled fingers. Running along the creature's body on certain parts was a red line, which also formed a unique pattern on its wing-like fins. Somehow Kyogre floated in the air as if it were in the water. As Misty got on the whale's back, the red lines on Kyogre's body began to glow.

Suddenly the sky became thick with dark clouds and the sound of thunder echoed through the land. In seconds, a massive downpour of rain began as Kyogre took off into the air.

"Kyogre, use Calm Mind!" Misty commanded. "Then hit Palkia with Ice Beam!"

Kyogre's eyes began to glow with a pinkish light. Once the whale had gotten in range, it opened its mouth and fired a beam of crackling white energy that struck Palkia in the back. A patch of ice formed where the beam hit and shattered as the dragon ruler of space turned around to face Kyogre.

"Damn it Misty, stay out of this!" Dawn ordered. "This is between me an my sisters!"

"Not anymore Dawn!" Misty told her. "This fight of yours has dragged everyone else in! So now I'm going to help Ash put a stop to this!"

"You asked for it!" Dawn shot back. "Palkia, use Spacial Rend!"

Palkia roared as it flung another pink blade of energy at Kogre. The great whale was struck in the right wing and nearly crashed to the ground before making a last minute turn upward. At the same time, Ash and Ho-Oh were still locked in fierce combat with Dusk and Diane.

"This is totally insane!" Shannon declared. "How the hell did these guys get their hands on such powerful Pokemon?"

"Maybe you should call in backup." Clint suggested.

"No amount of backup is going to be worth anything against those titans!" Shannon pointed out.

"Calling backup is unnecessary." Sabrina informed them. "I've have already called in some help of my own. He should be here any moment now."

As if on cue, a ball of blue light suddenly came from nowhere and struck Dialga in the side of its head. Ash, Dusk, and Diane looked to see floating in the air a six-foot-tall purplish-grey feline with a humanoid build. Its stomach and tail were both purple and it had a cord-like growth on the back of its neck.

"What kind of Pokemon is that?" Diane wondered.

"Mewtwo!" Ash called to the feline.

Mewtwo turned his head to look at Ash. "I understand you need assistance."

"You take care of Diane and Dialga!" Ash requested. "I'll handle Dusk and Giratina!"

"As you wish." Mewtwo agreed.

With that, Mewtwo began throwing more Aura Spheres at Dialga. Misty and Dawn meanwhile were still locked in combat, unaware of Mewtwo's arrival. Kyogre had barely managed to hold out against Palkia's attacks, but the damage Palkia had taken while fighting the other two cosmic dragons was beginning to take its toll.

"Dawn, how long are you going to keep blaming Diane for Dusk running off?" Misty demanded to know as the two Pokemon titans took a short breather.

"Looking after Dusk was her responsibility!" Dawn reminded her.

"Yeah? And how much responsibility have you taken for Dusk?" Misty asked.

"What's that supposed to mean?" Dawn replied.

"My older sisters used to dump a lot of stuff on me in the past." Misty explained. "I was the one who got stuck with all the dirty work. Didn't you ever once help Diane look after Dusk?"

"Hey! I had my own life to live!" Dawn argued.

"So what, Diane's life didn't matter?" Misty asked. "She has dreams of her own, just like you do! You're saying that your life and your dreams are more important?"

"Well… well no I…" Dawn replied as a look of realization came to her face.

"You're a kind person, but you're thinking the same way my sisters did." Misty continued. "So I'm going to handle you the same way Ash and I handled my sisters years ago! I'm going to knock some sense into you! Kyogre! Use Thunder!"

Kyogre cried out and a massive bolt of blue lighting came down from the sky and struck Palkia. In seconds, Palkia crashed to the ground, throwing Dawn and Piplup from its back. Piplup was out cold but Dawn was still conscious. After managing to sit up, Dawn called Palkia back to its ball using her left hand. As soon as Kyogre came close enough to the ground, Misty dismounted the whale and called it back to its ball before running to Dawn with Clint.

"You okay?" Misty asked Dawn.

"My arm really hurts, but other than that…" Dawn replied while Clint looked her over.

"Well, looks like you've broken this arm." Clint diagnosed. "We'll have to swing by my office to put it in a cast."

"I really screwed up, didn't I?" Dawn spoke to Misty. "I guess I can't blame Diane alone for losing Dusk. Maybe if I had been a little more involved and spent more time with Dusk, none of this would've happened."

Back up in the air, Dusk and Diane were still locked in combat with Ash and Mewtwo. Mewtwo continued pelting Dialga with Aura Spheres.

"Dialga, use Roar of Time!" Diane ordered.

The dragon of time roared and blasted Mewtwo with another beam of blue light. When the attack was over, Mewtwo had taken a good deal of damage but was still in the air. At the same time, all the damage Dialga had taken earlier was starting to get to the dragon.

"Just get out of my way!" Diane ordered Mewtwo. "I need to stop Dusk so I can get her the help she needs!"

"Why… are you so insistent that your sister needs help?" Mewtwo asked as he recovered from Dialga's attack. "She seems to be doing fine on her own."

"No! She's not well!" Diane insisted. "Dusk is more disturbed than ever because I let her run off! I have to make things right!"

"For her, or yourself?" Mewtwo asked.

Diane's eyes widened a bit. "…What?"

"Sabrina told me of what was going on when she sent for me." Mewtwo explained. "She told me of your relationship with these sisters of yours. And from what I have seen, it seems you are simply trying to correct your own mistake rather than do what is best for your sister."

"That… that's not…!" Diane tried to argue.

"If you cannot accept your own mistakes, than you are weak!" Mewtwo declared. "And that means you cannot stand against me!"

Mewtwo cried out and spread his arms, and in seconds a swirling ball of purple energy formed in front of him. The ball continued to grow as the legendary feline brought his arms back together.

"Psystrike!" Mewtwo called out.

The swirling ball of light flew forward and hit Dialga in the chest like a bullet. The dragon of time was knocked out cold and began to fall to the ground. As Dialga fell, Diane was suddenly flung from it's back in midair.

"Diane!" a horrified Cynthia called out as she threw a Pokeball. "Go Garchomp!"

Flying out of the ball was a dark-blue dragon with a head that slightly resembled the head of a hammerhead shark. On its back was a fin with a notch in it, and the wings on its arms were like a large pair of fins. Garchomp managed to catch Diane on its back long before she hit the ground. The shark dragon landed near Cynthia to allow Diane to get off. Soon after, Diane called Dialga back to its ball.

"Are you okay?" a concerned Cynthia asked.

"I'm fine." Diane assured her. "Cynthia… I'm sorry about all this."

"Just don't scare me like that again, okay?" Cynthia requested as she put a hand on her shoulder.

"Hey Diane?" Dawn interrupted as she approached.

"What do you want?" Diane responded.

"I just want to say that I'm sorry." Dawn explained. "I really have been too hard on you. I know you care about Dusk just as much as I do. I should've helped you more and maybe taken Dusk off your hands every now and then. Maybe if I had, things wouldn't be this way."

"No, you've been right all along." Diane told her. "If I hadn't been so involved in my work, Dusk wouldn't have run off."

"You were only doing what you love." Dawn reminded her. "Maybe we're both just as much to blame."

At that moment, Mewtwo landed on the ground near the others. The exhausted feline Pokemon fell to one knee.

"Mewtwo, are you okay?" a concerned Sabrina asked.

"I will be fine with some rest." Mewtwo assured her.

"Now Ash is fighting alone against Dusk." Diane realized.

"Don't worry. I'm sure Ash will do okay." Cynthia assured her.

Ash and Dusk were still engaging in battle up in the air. Ho-Oh had taken a good deal of damage from Giratina's attacks but was managing to hold on. Yet Dusk and Giratina were not letting up.

"Just go away Ash!" Dusk shouted.

"I'm only trying to help you Dusk!" Ash told her.

"Don't bother! It's… better if you and everyone else just leave me alone." Dusk replied. "I always do better alone."

"That's not true Dusk. You wouldn't have been able to help Marowak and her kids pass on if Sabrina, Morty, Misty, and I hadn't all helped you out." Ash pointed out. "And without Ben, you might not have been able to help the ghost of Maiden's Peak."

"Well… yeah, but still…" Dusk continued as tears came to her eyes. "I'm not normal! I cause trouble for normal people and get them involved in weird things! My sisters always fight because of me! So… it's better if I'm alone."

"You don't have to be alone Dusk!" Ash insisted. "You're not the only one who's a little different. Sabrina has psychic powers that no normal human had, but she has Morty, her parents, and lots of other people. It's the same for you Dusk!"

"No… it's not the same for me." Dusk denied. "So just go away already!"

"Not happening!" Ash replied. "Ho-Oh, use Sunny Day and Sacred Fire!"

Ho-Oh shrieked and shot a golden ray of light into the sky above. The rain stopped and the dark clouds dispelled to reveal a clear sunlit sky with a rainbow. The phoenix became shrouded again in rose-colored flames, and with a flap of its wings sent a wave of fire at Giratina. The phantom dragon was hurled back and knocked to the ground. Dusk managed to hang onto Girtina's back and was unharmed.

With the battle over, Ho-Oh landed on the ground near Giratina and Dusk. After dismounting Ho-Oh and calling it back to its ball, Ash walked over to Dusk with Pikachu and Lucario.

"I'm not going back with my sisters." Dusk told him.

"No one's asking you to." Ash replied.

"Dusk!" a worried Ben called as he ran over. "Are you okay?"

"I guess so." Dusk replied.

"Thank god." Ben breathed a sigh of relief. "Look Dusk… I've been trying to find you for years. You know how I feel about you."

"I… feel the same way." Dusk admitted.

"And that's why I want to travel with you Dusk." Ben told her. "My life hasn't been the same since that night we met. I want to be a part of your journey."

"It's better if you don't." Dusk replied sadly. "We're from two different worlds Ben. It… it just wouldn't work out."

"The hell it wouldn't." Ben responded. "Dusk, I came into your world that night at Maiden's Peak. I'm part of that world of yours now."

"So… you don't think I'm weird?" Dusk asked.

"If you are, so am I." Ben assured her. "So… will you have me?"

Dusk broke down in tears and wrapped her arms around Ben. Ben hugged her back, and after a moment the two of them kissed.

"Now hold on just a minute here!" Shannon interrupted. "I hate to break up such a touching moment, but you three girls have a few things to answer for after almost destroying this town."

"That will not be necessary, Officer Jenny." A familiar voice interrupted. Everyone looked to see Mayor Fuji approaching.

"Oh, Mayor Fuji! How long have you been here?" a surprised Shannon asked.

"Long enough to see that whole battle." Mayor Fuji answered. "And there is no need to punish Ms. Dusk or her sisters. No one was seriously harmed, and everything was resolved well. Besides, Ms. Dusk has done our town a great service."

"Thank you Mr. Mayor." Dusk replied.

"Wait, how do you know Dusk?" Ben asked.

"We met the night she came to town and sensed Marowak's spirit." Mayor Fuji explained. "I was the one who explained the situation to her. She's quite a remarkable young lady you know."

"You don't have to tell me." Ben agreed.

"Now then young man. If you are going to go with Ms. Dusk, then you may need this on your travels." Mayor Fuji continued as he handed Ben a Pokeball.

Ben took the Pokeball from the old man. "You know I'm not a Pokemon trainer."

"It's never too late to start." Mayor Fuji chuckled. "Consider this your first Pokemon."

Ben shrugged and threw out the Pokeball to see what was inside. The Pokemon that emerged was a living Cubone. The little Pokemon enthusiastically threw its bone into the air like a baton.

"That Cubone is the grandson of the Marowak who died in the tower." Mayor Fuji explained. "The trainer who raised Marowak's surviving child brought the little fellow to me hoping that I could find a good trainer for him. I think you'll do quite nicely."

"Thanks." Ben told him.

"I think we should be going now Ben." Dusk decided.

"Don't we need to get Giratina to the Pokemon Center first?" Ben asked.

"Nope." Dusk answered as she reached into the large black bag that was slung over her shoulder.

The item Dusk pulled out was a spray bottle with the words, _Max Revive_, written on the side in black letters. Dusk sprayed the liquid on Giratina, and in moments the phantom dragon regained consciousness and got up. Dusk got onto Giratina's back with Ben, Helen, and Cubone.

"Well, we'll be going now." Dusk told the others.

"Do you have to leave so soon Dusk?" Diane asked. "Can't you stay for a bit longer?"

"Don't worry sister. We'll see each other again real soon." Dusk assured her with a cheerful smile. "Nice seeing you all again." And with that, Giratina flew off into the sky and quickly vanished into the distance.

"At least she said goodbye this time." Dawn observed.

"If only we had understood Dusk better." Diane remarked. "It would've saved everyone a lot of pain."

"Hey, at least things are a little better between you guys." Ash pointed out.

"That's true." Dawn agreed.

"Well, we should probably get out of here." Clint decided. "For one thing Ms. Dawn, I still need to tend to that broken arm of yours."

"Yes, it has been a long day." Mayor Fuji agreed. "Though Officer Jenny, as I'm sire you're aware, there is one more thing you need to take care of here at the tower."

"Yeah, I have to get Mr. Baron's body out of there." Shannon sighed. "You know the guy was scum in the end, but I do feel kind of bad that we couldn't save him from getting killed."

"Yes, it is a shame." Mayor Fuji agreed. "But perhaps Mr. Baron's fate was unavoidable. Our sins have a way of catching up with us in the end. The same was true even for my own son."

With that remark, Mayor Fuji looked in Mewtwo's direction. The feline Pokemon noticed this and quirked his brow.

"So what do we tell Mrs. Baron?" Misty wondered.

"I'm sure we'll figure out something." Ash shrugged. "Whatever we tell her though, she's not gonna like it."

* * *

**Author's Note:** The battle in this chapter proved to be a tiny bit difficult to write. For those who don't recall, Misty had captured Kyogre in one of my previous stories, Revenge of Noir Mask. I'm sure many noticed that I wrote Kyogre as being able to fly in this story. I'm my own defense, Kyogre was depicted as being able to fly in some of the games. Plus it was the only way it could take part in the battle. As for Mewtwo showing up, even though I had implied in an earlier chapter Sabrina had called Mewtwo for backup, I still feel like him showing up was a bit of a Daeus ex Machina. All in all, I feel like there are some parts of this chapter I could've done better. But I'll let the readers be the judge.

Anyway, this story isn't quite over yet. There's going to be an epilogue that will hopefully be up soon. So stay tuned. And in the meantime, please review and let me know what you think.


	9. Epilogue

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Pokemon.

* * *

Epilogue

Only two days after the incident at the Tower of Memories, funerals were finally held for Julius Baron, Edger Gates, and John Braxton. The truth about the three men being the Team Rocket agents involved in Marowak's murder was not revealed. There was no real way to prove it, for one thing. And whether or not the truth came out didn't mater anyway. In the end, the three men had paid for their crimes. And all who were involved thought it would be kinder to the families of those men to remember them for who they pretended to be.

Dawn did not stay for the funeral. She felt that she couldn't face Carter, even though she knew his father's death would cause him great pain. As soon as her arm had been put in a cast, Dawn had headed home to Sinnoh. She had told the others that she needed time alone to rest and think. The rest of the group had stayed for the funeral though out of respect for their hosts during their stay in town.

Mewtwo had stayed as well, though he had no interest in the funeral. It was something that Mayor Fuji had said after the battle between Dawn and her sisters. When the old man had mentioned his son, he had looked in Mewtwo's direction. This had earned Mewtwo's curiosity. The feline Pokemon wanted to know just what Mayor Fuji knew about him, if he truly knew anything at all. An hour after the funeral, Mewtwo followed Mayor Fuji secretly back to his house.

The old man smiled as he noticed Mewtwo land behind. "I was wondering if I'd run into you again. You must have a question or two for me."

"When you spoke of your son, you looked as me as if I had something to do with him." Mewtwo replied. "How is your son connected to me?"

"The fact is if it weren't for my son, you would not even exist." Mayor Fuji replied as he turned to face him. "But come, this is a conversation we should have inside."

Mewtwo nodded and followed Mayor Fuji into the house. The feline took a moment to look around as Mayor Fuji went into the kitchen. It was a small yet comfortable-looking home, decorated with items that the old man had collected from a few world travels and some pictures hung on the wall. One picture in particular caught Mewtwo's attention though. It was a newer picture of a man wearing a white lab coat and glasses. He had grey hair that extended out from the front of his head and a pointed beard on his chin.

"I thought you would be interested in that picture." Mayor Fuji spoke as he returned carrying a cup and saucer. "I'm sure you recognize who that man is."

"This is the scientist who created me." Mewtwo identified. "He is your son?"

"I'm afraid so." The old man sighed as he sat on the couch and placed his cup on the coffee table. "My son told me about your existence, though he would not say much. Perhaps you would be interested to know why it was you were created."

"I was merely an experiment." Mewtwo coldly replied. "He only created me to see if he could produce the world's most powerful Pokemon."

"You were a little more than that, actually." Mayor Fuji revealed. "Your creation was a means to an end. My son hoped that cloning would a means to raise the dead."

"Raise the dead?" Mewtwo repeated with a quirked brow.

"He wanted to bring back his daughter, my granddaughter." Mayor Fuji explained. "Her name was Amber."

That name seemed to ring a bell in Mewtwo's mind. It sounded familiar to him somehow, yet he could not seem to place where he had heard it before. Like it was some sort of distant memory he couldn't quite grasp.

"When Amber died, my son was completely devastated." The old man continued. "He became obsessed with finding a way to bring her back to life. That obsession cost him his marriage and caused him to make deals with the criminal underworld. The is how you came into being."

"I see…" Mewtwo replied. "So I was more than a simple attempt to create the most powerful Pokemon in existence."

"In the end, my son's attempts to bring Amber back from the dead had failed." Mayor Fuji revealed. "He had gotten a little too eager and cloned Amber before you were even out of your tube. That clone did not survive, and to my son it was like he had lost Amber for a second time. After that, you became his obsession."

"Your granddaughter, what was she like?" Mewtwo asked.

"She was very special young girl." Mayor Fuji smiled. "I was perhaps just as devastated as my son was when she died. There's a picture of her here on the table if you'd like to see what she looked like."

Mewtwo levitated the small picture sitting on the corner of the coffee table to his hand. The picture was of a little girl with long green hair. The girl's face seemed very familiar to Mewtwo, even more so than the name. Yet no matter how hard her tried, he couldn't quite place it.

"It does not matter why your son created me." Mewtwo spoke coldly as he put the picture back on the table. "In the end, he saw me as nothing more than an experiment. That is why I had to put an end to him."

"Yes, my son failed to respect you as a living being. For that, he probably deserved what you did to him." Mayor Fuji agreed as Mewtwo headed for the door. "But it might interest you to know that my son is still alive."

Mewtwo stopped and turned as soon as he reached to door. "He still lives?"

"He was badly injured when you destroyed his lab. One of the men from Team Rocket found him as he and his comrades surveyed the wreckage." The old man explained. "That agent took pity my son and got him the medical attention he needed. He ended up in my care after that, for a time anyway. It was during that time when he told me of your existence and the purpose of his experiment."

"Where is your son now?" Mewtwo asked.

"I'm afraid I don't know." Mayor Fuji answered. "Probe my mind if you wish, but I assure you that you will find nothing. My son and I parted ways after that time. If I may ask one thing though, what would you do if you did find my son?"

"…I don't know." Mewtwo answered after a moment. "Perhaps it is better if I do not find him." And with that, he opened the door and flew off into the sky.

* * *

Ash and the others had gathered outside the Pokemon Center. With everything settled in Lavender Town, the time had come for everyone to move on.

"So where are you two headed?" Ash asked Cynthia and Diane.

"We're going back to my villa in Sinnoh to finish translating the manuscript." Cynthia answered. "With Diane's skill, it should be done in no time."

"I'm sorry all of you got dragged into the whole mess with my sisters." Diane spoke.

"Don't worry about it." Misty assured her. "Besides, things are better between you and your sisters now."

"I suppose so." Diane agreed. "One thing I want to do is try and understand Dusk's special gift better. Hopefully I will by the time I run into her again."

"Well, we should all be going now." Morty decided. "Until we meet again."

With that, Ash and Misty headed off with Sabrina and Morty in the direction of Saffron City, while Cynthia and Diane went another way. As Ash's group left the town limits, Ash glanced up at the sky and thought he saw something resembling Giratina streak past in the distance.

"Something wrong Ash?" Misty asked.

"Nah, it's nothing." Ash replied.

"You know it's great that Dusk has Ben traveling with her now." Misty remarked. "I wonder if we'll ever see them again?"

"I'm sure we will." Ash assumed. "It's a big world after all. There are probably a lot of other old haunted places for Dusk to do her work."

THE END?

* * *

**Afterward:** That brings another story in this AU to a close. A lot of this epilogue ended up being used to foreshadow another future story. One that I had not planned to do originally. Let's just say that X and Y has caused me to change a few of my original plans. Anyway, this might not have been the best story I've ever written, but it was a lot of fun for me to write. Especially at this time of year during the Halloween season. I hope everyone had fun reading this story too. I'll be back with another Pokemon story hopefully sometime next month. So until then, stay tuned.

Please review and let me know what you think.


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